


You're My Sanctuary

by mal_fuctioning_writer



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Police, F/M, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-12
Updated: 2018-07-12
Packaged: 2019-06-09 09:08:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 11
Words: 25,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15264132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mal_fuctioning_writer/pseuds/mal_fuctioning_writer
Summary: You have been in an abusive relationship with Tony for years, convinced that he loved you. The night you were supposed to go out with your friends, he prevented you from going. Your friend finally calls the police, tired of seeing you being controlled . Officer Bucky Barnes shows up to finally free you from this endless cycle of abuse. (Modern Police AU Bucky Barnes X Reader)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is and has always been my favorite story to write and go back to read. This is my story.

You stared out the window blankly. Feelings of pain engulfed you, and you felt like you were going to cry. But you weren’t going to. You hadn’t been able to cry in years, as you’d cried so many times that you’d become numb.

A pair of hands wrapped around you, and you stiffened at the sensation of his chin resting on your shoulder. You turned away so you couldn’t see him in your peripheral vision, but he forcefully turned your head towards him anyway.

“Don’t be this way, baby. Come on, you know that I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it,” Tony said, squeezing your body tightly.

You refused to respond, trying to shake him off of you. You managed to push him off, and turned your back to him with a huff. You instantly regretted it, knowing that this would simply anger him.

“You will look at me when I’m talking to you,” his voice echoed through the penthouse as he grabbed your arm roughly, imposingly turning you to face him. He saw the fear in your eyes, and his grip relaxed. He brought you over to sit on the bed, his facial expression much calmer than before. He caressed your face, grazing over your bruised eye, and shook his head, “I’m sorry, Y/N. Please forgive me.” He wiped blood from your busted lip and took your hand.

You finally spoke up, even if you sounded like a mouse, “You promised That I could go out tonight. I already told Nebula and Wanda that I would be there.”

His hand stiffened, and he closed his eyes, inhaling sharply, “I know I did, doll, but I don’t feel comfortable with you going somewhere disgusting dog-like men can gawk at you. I just think you’d be safer here with me.”

“You never let me leave, Tony.”

He grabbed a hold of your hair and pulled it back, “Like I said, you’re safer here. Just call them and tell them that you can’t make it, okay?”

You winced in pain, maintaining eye contact, “Okay.”

He pulled on your hair, “Do it now.” He let go and pushed you over, watching you as you opened your phone to call Nebula.

You felt your heart beating rapidly, anticipating on hearing Nebula’s voice.

“Y/N? Where are you?”

You pinched the bridge of your nose and took a deep breath, “Hey Neb. I’m, uh still at home.”

“What? You were supposed to be here 30 minutes ago,” she was stern as she spoke.

“Is that, Y/N? Tell her I said hi,” Wanda said in the background.

You closed your eye, feeling pained that you couldn’t be with your friends. You hadn’t been able to see them in so long due to Tony’s orders. “I know, Neb. It’s just that I- I can’t make it tonight,” you said, trying so hard not to sound abnormal.

“What? Why not?”

You muted yourself and looked to Tony, “She asked why.”

“Tell her that you’re feeling too sick to go out,” he instructed.

You nodded and did as he instructed, but Nebula’s response was not what you expected.

“Y/N, is Tony telling you what to say?”

You panicked, “No, of course not! How could you say such a thing?”

“Don’t lie to me. I can tell by the tone of your voice. Hang tight, I’m calling the cops,” she hung up the instant she finished speaking, leaving no room for you to protest.

“What did she say?” Tony asked.

You clutched your phone in your hands, contemplating whether you should tell him the truth or not, “She- she understood.”

He smiled, cupping your face in your hands, “Good. Change out of those clothes. Wear the lingerie I like. You deserve a reward tonight.” He pushed you up, tapping you on the butt as you walked away.

You closed the closet door behind you and slowly stripped off the outfit you had so carefully chosen to wear. You hesitantly put on what he told you to then fell to your knees. You really wanted to cry, but tears refused to flow. No matter how much agony you felt in your heart, you were not able to force yourself to shed a single tear.

“What’s taking you so long?” Tony asked.

You scrambled to get up, “I’m coming now, dear.” You entered the bedroom, standing in front of him. He smirked and you worried about what he would want next.

He unbuckled his belt and pulled down his trousers, still sitting at the edge of the bed. Tony beckoned for you to come closer and you followed. Once you were in front of him, he placed his hand on your shoulder, pushing you to kneel down. “You know exactly what I want you to do,” he said in a hushed voice.

You were now trembling, you really didn’t want to do this, but you knew that he would beat you if you didn’t. You pulled down his underwear hesitantly, revealing his hard on. There was a sinking feeling in your stomach when the thought of what he was forcing you to do vividly played in your mind before even performing the act. You gulped and wrapped your lips around it, your tongue swirling around the member.

Tony threw his head back in pleasure, moaning to match this sensation he was feeling. He put his hand on the back of your head, forcing you to take it all the way down to the base. It made you gag, but he didn’t care as long as he was being pleasured.

“NY PD, open up!” A tumultuous voice yelled, followed by loud banging on the door.

Tony sat up and pulled you by the hair, rage clear in his eyes, “What have you done?”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know what-”

He dragged you to the coat closet and threw you in, “You’re going to stay in here. Don’t make a sound.” He moved the coasts so that they covered you as much as possible. He closed the door silently, leaving it open just a crack, and pulling his pants back up. He fixed his hair and made sure he was presentable before opening the door. “Good evening, officers! What seems to be the problem Officer,” he scanned his uniform for a name, “er- Chief Rogers?”

Steve looked behind him, assessing the dark penthouse behind him, and answered, “We received a call reporting a case of domestic violence.”

Tony tilted his head in confusion, “Are you sure this is the right address? I assure you that I’m here alone, and if you don’t believe me, you are welcome to take a look inside.” He stepped aside and motioned for them to enter.

“Barnes, go look around. I’ll stay here to make sure this guy doesn’t do anything funny,” Steve said.

Bucky nodded and proceeded to enter the apartment. There seemed to be no signs of anyone else, but knew there had to be more to it. He entered the bedroom, the faint smell of a woman’s perfume lingered in the air, providing him with motivation to search closer. Next he entered the walk-in closet to find a woman’s shoe sticking out of a cubbyhole.

“Hello? Is anyone there?” he asked with no reply. He searched closer and found nothing. It appeared that who ever was there had already vacated the place, so he started making his way back to the front door. Then he nearly overlooked a door in the hallway, opened just a crack, but decided to give it a look. Bucky slowly opened the door, searching thoroughly, finding nothing. Just as he was about to give up, he noticed something move slightly between the coats.

You hugged your knees to your chest, hiding your face, hoping that no one would notice you. The sound of the hangers scraping the rail as they were pushed to the side forced you to look up. There the shadowy outline of a man stood loomed over you.

Bucky felt his heart skip a beat as you looked him with innocently large eyes. He was distracted by how stunning you were, simply taking a moment to bask in your beauty. Then he noticed the bruises you had all over your body, forcing him into the reality as to why you were hidden in the closet. “Rogers, I found a girl! She’s bruised, hidden in a coat closet,” he yelled, “come here, miss, we’re here to help you.”

You shook your head and backed away as far against the wall as you could, “No! If I come out, he’s going to hurt me. Please!”

Bucky extended his hand out to you, “I promise that I won’t let him lay a single finger on you.”

You studied him for a second and crawled forward, taking his hand. You were gently guided out of the closet to see Tony standing next to another officer.

“I told you to stay in there,” he stated, stepping towards you with his arm raised in preparation to strike you.

You winced, getting ready to take Tony’s blow. But it didn’t come. Bucky pulled you close to him, and turned to take the hit for you.

Steve apprehended Tony, instantly taking him down to the ground. “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be held against you in the court of law,” he said with such an empowering voice.

“I haven’t done anything wrong! That was an accident, I’m sor- Ow, ow, ow! That’s a bit tight there officer,” Tony said whilst being handcuffed.

“Are they? I’m sorry,” Steve said sarcastically, “You have the right to have an attorney present. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you. I’ll take it from here, Barnes. You handle the girl, okay? Meet us back at the station for questioning, later.” He picked Tony off the ground and pushed him along, out into the hallway.

Bucky still had you buried in his chest until he heard a quiet sob leave your lips. He stepped back and looked at you, revealing that your eyes were filled with tears, “Hey, are you okay? Did you get hurt?”

You blinked, allowing the tears to drip down your cheeks, “I-I’m fine. It’s just that I haven’t cried in so long. It’s been a very long time since I’ve felt anything other than fear. Thank you so much. Thank you.” You smiled smile up at him, wiping away your tears. In this lighting, you could see him more clearly.

He had a strong brow, his hair a nice brunette, and his build was muscular. He was definitely what you would call an attractive man.

Bucky was momentarily paralyzed, feeling that his heart skip again. He cleared his throat, “It’s no problem, ma'am. It’s sort of my job. Why don’t you change into something more comfortable, so we can head to the station?”

You nodded, separating from him, “Yes, officer. I’ll be right back.”

At the station, Officer Rogers questioned you about your personal information as Officer Barnes took notes. All was well until the question came along, “Would you like to press charges against Mr. Stark?”

The moment he asked that question, Someone taking Tony to his cell passed by. He managed to slip from them, and he knelt down beside you, “Y/N, baby, please. I love you. Don’t let anything happen to me. I love you, you know that I love you. I promise not to let it happen again. I’ll be better!” Immediately after, two officers dragged him away while he begged you to forgive him.

“I’m very sorry about that, Ma'am. Do you have your answer?” Steve asked.

You weren’t mentally present after that, you stared off into the direction he was being dragged. Tony was the only man who loved you. He was the only person who cared for you. If he was sent away, you’d be all alone again. You really didn’t want that to happen, so you shook your head.

As you were about to answer, Nebula’s voice sprouted out from behind you, “Yes, she would, Steve.”

You turned around to see her and Wanda standing behind you. You shot up to hug them both, and felt so much better to be reunited with your friends. Their authentic affection overshadowed Tony’s instantly.

“Alright. Looks like you guys have some catching up to do. Let’s go file this in, Buck,” Steve said.

Bucky nodded, eyeing you one more time before walking off.

Nebula separated and went to kiss Steve, which alarmed you, “Thanks for helping her, Steve.”

He smiled and kissed her forehead.

“Uh, whoa. What did I miss?” you asked.

Wanda rested her head on your shoulder, “You’ve been gone for so long, Y/N. We have much to talk about.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SUICIDE ATTEMPT
> 
> You and your friends catch up at the police station. Completely happy with yourself, you make an attempt to take your own life.

“How long has it been since we’ve seen each other?” you asked while being squeezed by Wanda.

Nebula tilted her head, looking up to think about it, “Probably a good 6 months since we sneaked in to visit you?”

Wanda nodded, her cheek against yours, “That’s when Tony kicked us out and banned you from speaking to us for about 3 weeks. Do you remember that?”

You shook your head, “I’m afraid not. There’s not much that I can remember other than Tony and his business partners.”

The three of you reminisced about all the wild things you had done together in the past. They even brought up the time you got so wasted that you sneaked into the zoo to steal a penguin. You ended up returning it the next day, but you had to work there for 4 months to compensate. It was when you were working there that you met Tony, accidentally spilling orange soda on his suit.

Suddenly, you found your thoughts derailing from the current conversation, thinking about how he must have been handling his situation. The next moment, a hand was waving in your face, pulling you back from your dazed state.

“Were you even listening to me, Y/N?” Wanda asked, seeming a bit irritated by the lack of attention she was receiving from you.

You rested your head on her shoulder, “I’m sorry Wanda. I just got distracted. Do forgive me, please.”

She sighed and nodded, “It’s understandable that you feel this way. I asked if you still had that pair of sexy red stilettos that you used to rock.”

You shook your head, “Tony said that they were too scandalous for me to wear, and other men would try to steal a look at me.”

“Well, who cares about that cocksucker? His opinion is irrelevant to you now,” Nebula said.

You chuckled and attempted to change the subject, “How is Pietro doing, Wanda? Last time we talked, he was starting to open up a doughnut shop right?”

She grinned and took your hands into hers, “Oh yes! It’s going quite wonderfully. It’s how Neb met Steve!”

“That was definitely a bit stereotypical, but it was romantic nonetheless,” Nebula added.

“You simply must start working with us there, Y/N! We could always use a helping hand,” Wanda continued.

Your conversation came to an abrupt stop when Steve interrupted, “I really hate to stop you girls from reconnecting, but I’m afraid that we have to discuss your living situation, Y/N, okay?”

You adjusted yourself so that you were sitting upright, listening to everything he said very carefully.

“The way this is going to work is that there will always be an officer outside your penthouse, keeping watch over who approaches you at night. Then they’ll stay with you inside during the day. Every 4 or so hours, an officer will switch places and knock on your door to make sure you’re still okay. I’m sorry to say that you won’t be getting much sleep until this case is settled, and your safety is guaranteed. Here at the station, we are all too familiar with powerful a man like Tony Stark. He is willing to do anything, and everything, to secure what is his. Even if that means having you removed from the picture.” 

3 hours must have already gone by since you were brought home around 10, and you hadn’t managed to go to sleep yet. Your bed seemed much bigger without another body lying next you. You found yourself missing Tony. He was definitely a horrible man, no doubt about that, but there were few good things about him that you couldn’t help but miss. He always kept you warm at night, spooning you with his steady breathing serving as a soothing beat that lulled you to sleep.

Still, that wasn’t the only thing keeping you up. What Steve said about Tony was true. It made you shiver just thinking about it. Tony would do everything in his power to have you all to himself again. Whether it meant having you kidnapped or even killed, he would do whatever it took for him to be the only one to have you.

The reality that you were still not in control of your own life, even with him behind bars, slowly consumed the rest of your thoughts, making it the only thing you could think about. Breathing came more and more difficult for you, almost like there was a pile of bricks stacked on top of your chest. You got out of bed and ran to open the door to the balcony. You leaned over the railing, gasping for air thinking that it might help you breathe better. The cold air flooded your lungs and you instantly relaxed, looking down at the city lights in front of you.

All the people sleeping in their beds with people who cared for them. They were all living their peaceful and perfect lives. Just thinking about it made you feel even worse. Salty tears stung your eyes as they accumulated along your water line, blurring your vision. You climbed onto the railing and took a deep breath. You couldn’t bear the thought of being a prisoner in your own home.

Bucky rounded the corner to see Steve and smiled, “Hey Chief. It’s 2 am time to switch out.”

Steve nodded and get him a pat on the back, “Have fun Bucky. Keep her safe okay? You’d have my homicide to deal with if Nebula finds out Y/N gets hurt in any way.”

“Will do, Steve. Get home and rest now. G'night Chief,” he said while chuckling.

“Night Officer Barnes,” Steve replied, waving backwards as he walked away.

Bucky anticipated being able to see you again. He knew it was wrong for him to be excited about being around you considering the situation you were currently in, but he hoped to be able to calm your scattered mind even the slightest bit.

He knocked on the door, “Ma'am, we’ve switched shifts. Please open up.” He waited for a moment, waiting for the door to open, but no one came. Bucky assumed that you were most likely asleep, and knocked harder to come to the same result. Now he knew that something must have been wrong. He thrust door open and rushed to your bedroom, careful not to break the lock, just in time to see you through the glass windows as you stood at the edge.

Just as you stepped off, someone had grabbed your hand. You dangled over the edge, adrenaline rushing through you. You looked up at the person who had stopped you and saw the officer who had originally found you.

“Ma'am, please give me your other hand so I can pull you up,” he said.

“Just let go of me! I don’t want to live like this anymore,” you cried out.

He shook his head, “No. I refuse to allow you to end your life like this. There’s so much you have to live for!”

“Like what, Officer Barnes? I’ll just be a sitting duck while I’m alive. It’s like I’m just cargo. Nobody can see me for me,” you said while trying to make yourself heavier.

“I see you.”

His words shocked you and you stopped struggling. You couldn’t help but stop and stare at him, waiting for his explanation.

“I can see you. I’m here, and I see you. You are a person with your own opinions and thoughts. I can see that there is more to you than this helpless victim. Both times I’ve been with you, you’ve cried. But I’ve seen your smile, and I hope that I can stay around long enough to see it again. So just give me your other hand.”

You were mesmerized by the passion behind what he said and contemplated giving him your other hand, “You don’t even know me.”

“You’re right. I don’t know you. If you don’t give me your other hand, I’ll never even get the pleasure of getting to know you.”

His sincerity was clear now. This man really did want to save you, and he made valid points. You finally found it in yourself to reach your other hand out to him. He took it without hesitation, pulling you up and into his arms. You sobbed hysterically into his chest as he held you close to him.

Bucky breathed a sigh of relief and threaded his fingers through your hair, “Don’t worry ma'am, I-”

“Y/N. My name is Y/N,” you interrupted.

He smiled and nodded, “Y/N. I got you now Y/N. You’re safe.”

He brought you back to bed and sat at the foot of it, facing the door, and watching it intently. It made the silence awkward as you stared at the back of his head.

“Thank you again, Officer Barnes,” you said, breaking the silence.

He looked over his shoulder and nodded, “It’s my job, Y/N. And since we’re on a first name basis, you can call me Bucky.”

“Thank you very much, Bucky. I owe you my life. Twice now you have kept me out of harm’s way.” Your eyelids felt heavy, and you soon drifted to sleep.

Bucky heard that your breaths had become slower, signifying that you were asleep, and covered your body with your sheets before leaving you to rest. Someone would end up waking you again in a matter of hours, so he wanted you to sleep as much as possible.

You were awakened by someone knocking at the door, knowing that it meant they were changing shifts. It disappointed you in a way since it meant that Bucky was already gone. This officer didn’t even bother asking if you were okay. You hoped that he might be assigned to you during the day time so that you could be around him more.

Fortunately your wish came true around lunchtime. Officer Barnes showed up for his shift with treats from the Pietro’s doughnut shop. “Wanda wanted me to bring these for you. I’m not supposed to, but I’d much rather face the Chief’s wrath than Nebula’s. Wanda also wanted me to tell you that the position for you to work there is always open,” he said, trying to imitate Wanda’s voice.

You chuckled and allowed him to come inside. You led him to the kitchen, taking a seat with him to enjoy the doughnuts he brought. You indulged in the sweetness and aerated pastry with your eyes closed.

Bucky smiled, watching you be so immersed by a simple dessert as if it were the first good thing you’d tasted in years. He turned away as soon as you opened your eyes, hoping that you didn’t catch him staring at you.

“Tony never allowed me to have anything other than what he had someone make for me. He said it was for my own safety because he wanted to make sure I never got poisoned or something,” you explained.

Bucky couldn’t believe that someone would ever treat you as if you were less than your worth. From what he’d seen so far, you were a great catch. It wasn’t probable cause to treat you like some sort of caged bird. His body tensed up just thinking about how long you endured Tony’s abuse.

You could tell that something was bothering Bucky and decided to speak up, “Is there something wrong, Bucky?”

He smiled and shook his head, “No, I was just thinking about something. It’s not important, though.”

“Nonsense! If there’s something you’d like to say, go ahead. You did say you wanted to get to know me.”

“You’re right, but I feel like it might be a bit of a touchy subject.”

You sighed and sat back in your chair, “You’d like to ask why I stayed with him for so long. Am I right?”

He chuckled nervously, “Yes, ma'am. Was I that easy to read? I’m sorry.”

You leaned forward and smiled at him. “No need to say sorry. I’m willing to share with you,” you took a deep breath before proceeding, “Tony wasn’t always this abusive. He was actually very sweet to me at first. He brought me to fancy restaurants, surprised me at work, and spoiled me with gifts. The first time he hit me, he said it was an accident. But it kept happening, each time more aggressive than the last. He began controlling my life. He even made me quit my job and move in with him saying that he would pay for anything and everything I wanted or needed. I allowed it all because he told me how much he loved me every time. No one before him had ever told me that they loved me. Tony forced me to perform sexual acts with him, despite my renunciations. He eventually made me even believe that he was the only one who ever would love me. It was like I was scared to live without him. I lost who I was, and I don’t even remember who I used to be anymore.”

He shook his head, “Wow, I’m so sorry to hear that. No one deserves that kind of treatment.”

“It’s fine. I’m free from him now, even if someone comes after me. I feel better knowing that you are here to protect me. You and the others, I mean.”

“You’re definitely in safe hands, I can tell you that much. Do you mind if I ask you something else?”

“Not at all! Ask away, Officer.”

“Did you ever entertain the idea of leaving?”

You tensed, recollecting the night you made an attempt to finally abandon your abusive partner, “Yes. I have.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Bucky begin to bond over your intense and abusive past as you slowly feel yourself become the you that you once were.

“My doll, come to bed with me already,” Tony sleepily waved you over.

“No, I don’t want to,” you stated boldly.

“Did you just say no to me?” he asked.

You clenched your fists, waiting for something to happen, “Yes, I did. What are you going to do about it?”

When there was no response, you knelt next to him, checking for any sign of him being awake. You held a mirror under Tony’s nose, pleased to see that it fog up; next, you shook him rather roughly, assuring that he was completely unconscious. The first part of your plan had been a success. You had opportunely sneaked Rohypnol into Tony’s drink during dinner to create a window of opportunity for you to finally leave your life behind.

Now it was time to start the 2nd, and hardest of your plan: Making your get away.

It was much easier than you thought it would be. You took the elevator down to the 2nd floor, then slipped out through the back door in the garage, making sure to stay within the surveillance camera’s blind spots. Every little thing had been going according to plan, down to the timing of the security guard taking a smoke break. You slipped right past his booth as he scoured his locker for his pack of cigarettes. After that, you were completely home free as soon as you got onto the bus, taking you across the city.

You made a quick and clean getaway, or so you thought. Once you go to the park, you came to realize that you had no money, no way of contacting your friends, and in result nowhere to go. To make matters worse, you didn’t even have any idea where you were. So you sat there, on a cold park bench in the dead of a cold winter night with nothing more than the clothes on your back.

You couldn’t remember what freedom was like, but if this is what it was, it felt even worse.

As the night went on, you felt your body becoming numb from the chilly air. The cold was something you hadn’t originally accounted for, but you wish you had more than just a thin jacket to keep you warm. You’d been so caught up in making sure you ran away without leaving a trace that you didn’t plan the events that come afterwards.

Just as you started to fall asleep from the numbing cold, a warm jacket wrapped around you. You looked up and gasped at the sight of Tony sitting next to you with his arms crossed.

“T-tony, I thought that you-”

He raised his hand to silence you, “Baby doll, did you really think that I’d fall for that trick so easily?”

Your gaze shifted down to the floor and you shook your head.

Tony let out a deep sigh, “Don’t you see how lost you are without me? It hasn’t even been an hour since you left, and you’re freezing to death in the middle of a sketchy park. Without me, you’re lost and lonely, Y/N. You need me. You’re nothing without me.”

You didn’t know if it was because you were freezing or if it was because you agreed with Tony, but you found yourself hugging him, sobbing into his chest. He wrapped his arm around you and stroked your hair with the other. Tony allowed this to continue for a bit before lifting your chin, lifting it so that you were looking at him. His expression was calm and empathetic; it was almost like he truly did care for you, making you regret running away.

“Let’s go home, huh doll? Where it’s warm, and you’ll be safe,” he said with a small smile.

You nodded and he grabbed your legs, placing them on his lap so that he could carry you. Tony placed you down on the passenger’s side of his car then went over to his side. The car ride home was deathly silent, so you had assumed that he wasn’t angry. He even grabbed your hand to kiss it at one point. But in reality, he was restraining his wrath for when you got home.

That night, he bound you to the bed, blindfolded you, and forced unthinkable things upon you until morning. It was his punishment for your defiance, and assurance that you would never try to run away ever again.

“It worked because, until now, I was terrified of ever attempting to even step out of the penthouse without Tony’s approval,” you explained.

Bucky sat across from you, dumbfounded, not able to think of anything to say.

You smiled and shook your head, “But that’s all in the past now. You saved me, Bucky. Now, I know what it’s like to be free again.”

He returned the smile, “I think whoever you were before Tony will eventually surface. If you were able to last this long, the you inside of you must be fighting hard.”

“Again, I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you. Maybe you have a bigger role to play in my life, Officer Barnes.”

He shook his head, “It’s just my job, Y/N.”

“But even so, you’ve been nothing but kind to me. So, thank you.”

“Let’s just change the subject now.”

You rubbed your chin, “Okay, let me ask you something: What’s your favorite food?”

“That’s an easy one. A deluxe cheeseburger from Uncle Ben’s diner down on Charleston and Anne Road. The best burger my taste buds have even come into contact with,” he spoke with bright eyes, making you want to try such a burger.

“Now, an even more jarring question for you: will you take me there? It’s been so long since I’ve had food that hadn’t been taken apart then put back together again like a science project.”

“I’m not sure if that’s the best idea. The next shift is supposed to start in about an hour,” he sat up straight with his arms crossed.

You pouted, “Come on, please? Just for a quick burger! I know that you’re going to get me back in time.”

He rolled his eyes and shook his head, “I’m not going to jeopardize my job for a cheeseburger. I’m supposed to watch you, and keep you safe.”

“Buck, I trust you enough to keep me safe, so please?”

On the way back to the penthouse you squealed and thanked him for taking you out.

“I can’t believe I’ve jeopardized my job to go out for a cheeseburger,” he said as he pulled up to the curb.

You held the lobby door open for him with a cheeky smile, “I think it was totally worth it. I haven’t had anything so unhealthy in ages! I owe you so much, Bucky.”

Bucky smiled, “I hope whoever has the next shift hasn’t arrived yet. We’re a few minutes late, you know?”

“Ah! We better hurry then; I’d hate it if you got in trouble because of me,” you pressed the number to your floor and hopped up and down slightly in anticipation. Once the doors opened you yelled, “Go, go, go!”

The two of you ran into your home as quick as possible, laughing until you were stopped by the state of which your penthouse had been in. There was broken glass from the tables all over the floor, the sofas had been overturned, and everything was just a huge ransacked mess.

Bucky drew his gun and put his finger to his lips to tell you not to make a sound. He slowly checked around the corner and found nothing. He stepped towards the bedroom, kicking the door open, and instantly relaxing when finding that whoever was here had already left.

“Chief Rogers was right,” you said in disbelief.

“I’m just glad that we weren’t here when they came. I better call the chief and tell him what happened. You’re not safe staying here anymore,” he said as he pulled out his phone.

As he walked closer to the bed, he noticed a card with your name on it. He picked it up and held it out to you, “This must have been left for you. Want to read it?”

You nodded, “It’s better if I do.”

You scanned over the words that sent chills down your spine. Your legs felt wobbly, causing you to lose your balance and fell to the ground.

He knelt down next to you, “What’s wrong? What does it say?”

You looked at him, trembling with fear, and handed it him.

“I’ll be coming home soon. Clean up this mess,” it read.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An intense interrogation on Tony helps you build a case against him even more. All the while, Bucky is taken off of the case for fear of him having feelings for you and you're assigned a new body guard who is more careless, yet fun.

“I honestly have no idea what you’re accusing me of, Officer. I’ve been in a jail cell all by myself all since you put me here last night,” Tony said with a smug smile.

“How do you explain this,” Steve tossed the card onto the table, “Mr. Stark. Tell me when you want your lawyer,

Tony picked up the note and scoffed upon scanning it, "I’ll be my own lawyer, thank you very much. You really think I would do something to incriminate myself when I’m already behind bars? What do you take me for? Some sort of fool?”

"If not you, then who would leave such a message?“ Steve inquired.

Tony sat back in his chair, poking his tongue to his cheek. "I haven’t the slightest idea,” he turned to look at the one way glass, “I love Y/N, so why would I do anything to harm her?”

You grasped and pulled at the bottom of your shirt nervously. How did he manage to look right at you? His gaze pierced right through the glass and into your heart. You put a hand to the glass and felt the need to be by his side.

“You do realize that you’re in here for that exact reason, don’t you?”

He winked then turned back to face Steve, “I refuse to answer anymore questions related to a crime I did not commit.”

You felt a hand be placed you your shoulder, so you turned your head to face the person who it belonged to. It was Bucky, who was looking at you with such an intense gaze, “Are you okay?” His voice was hushed and concerned.

You turned to watch Steve interrogate Tony even further, and closed your hand against the glass, “I would like to speak with him.”

“What? But that’s-”

“Bucky, please. I think he’s hiding something. He’ll talk to me if I go in,” you said with certainty, turning to face the built man.

He stared at you for a moment before falling victim to your tender observe. “Chief, she’d like to speak to him alone,” he triggered the intercom without breaking his gaze from you.

Steve pinched the bridge of his nose and put his other hand on his hip, “Yeah, sure, okay. I’m getting a migraine anyways.

This satisfied you, and you rewarded him with an embrace, "Thank you, Bucky.”

He returned the gesture with a one armed hug whilst he looked the other way to hide a blush, “Whatever, kid. Just be careful. If anything goes out of hand, I’m rushing right in, got it?”

You nodded against his chest and Steve happened to walk in to see the two of you, clearing his throat to force a separation between the two of you. Steve raised a brow then shook his head, “Do whatever you need to do. Just don’t do anything stupid.”

“Yes, sir,” you replied, hurrying to get to the interrogation room.

“You’re getting too close, Barnes,” Steve said.

Bucky sighed, “I know sir. I can guarantee you that nothing will occur between the two of us.”

“Bucky, as your friend, I’m going to say that getting involved with her outside of work is a bad idea. With her current situation, Stark might hear about how close the two of you are, and do something about it. I don’t want to see you hurt, Buck. You’re my best friend.”

“Steve, I can’t help it. Something about this girl is just so magnetic. It’s like from the very moment I saw her, rotary engine of a heart just wouldn’t stop pumping so fast.”

“Then as your boss, I’m going to have to take you off of her case.”

“Steve, you can’t-”

“Bucky, this is for your own good.”

Bucky grinded his teeth with his fists clenched. “Sir, please don’t take me off of this case. I promise that I won’t get involved with her.”

Tony raised his arms as soon as you opened the door, smiling like he wasn’t being interrogated, “Baby doll! I’m so glad to see you! You have no idea how I’ve missed you.”

You remained by the door, simply glaring at this happy-go-lucky character as he welcomed you with open arms. Your knees buckled, and you couldn’t force yourself to move forward. There was always something about just being in his presence that made you feel utterly weak and defenseless.

“What’s the matter, baby? I thought you want to talk. Come on, take a seat,” he beckoned you over, and you finally found yourself able to move. He chuckled for some reason, shaking his head, “Even in this situation, you can only act upon my orders. What a good little pet you are, Y/N darling. Now, what is it that you’d like to talk about?” He propped his head on his arms on the table, staring at you with mischief as his clear demeanor, waiting for you to speak.

“Do you promise that you weren’t the one to destroy the penthouse?”

He took your hand, calmly staring into your eyes, “I want to change for you, Y/N. I would never to that to my own home, especially if it would put you in harm’s way.” He pressed his lips against your hand, watching for reaction. Once your deathly gaze softened, he knew he had you right where he wanted you. Tony knew everything about how to manipulate you into sympathizing with him. His only goal was to get you onto his side again. “Baby doll, I’ve said it a million times, and I’ll say it again, I love you so much. I promise you that I’ll be better,” he said gingerly.

Steve shook his head, “I’m going in, he’s taking advantage of her.” He started for the door, but Bucky grabbed hold of his arm, not looking away from you.

“Wait a second, Chief. Let’s trust her,” Bucky said.

“Let’s go home together, baby doll. Please?” Tony took the chance to ask while he thought you were mesmerized by his kind act.

His facial expression seemed affectionate and genuine, so you led him to believe that you were genuinely under his control, “Tony, I would love nothing more.”

Tony smiled, “Then drop the charges, and we-”

“No, let me finish. I would love nothing more than to see you rot behind bars, you shameless bastard,” you interrupted him, you scowled and pulled away your hand, “I’m not going to just let you get away with this. I know that you’re the one who ordered one of your goons to trash our place. The security guard would never let anyone who he hasn’t seen before anywhere near the even the elevators; you and I both know that very well.”

“Oh, she’s got claws. I can assure you that I had absolutely nothing to do with this, baby doll.”

You sat on the table in front of him with your legs crossed so that your legs were more appealing, “Come on Tony, I know you must’ve set something up in advance if this situation ever occurred.”

He sat with his mouth agape, and his eyes wide for a moment before bursting out with a hearty laughter, “There she is. The sexy little doll I’ve been waiting for. You usually refrain from speaking out like this. I really don’t like it. Who taught you how to be brave, huh? Was it that brunette devil who was basically undressing you with his eyes? A little bird told me that he was the one with you when you got home, wasn’t he?” He instantly realized that he had messed up, watching you with squinted eyes as you smiled.

“Ah, so you did have something to do with this. So you’ve lied to me? Just tell me again when you need that lawyer,” Steve flipped the light switch on, allowing them to be seen through the glass. Tony facepalmed as he looked over to see the two of the men.

“I told you I could get it out of him,” you said, looking back at the glass with a smile plastered on your face.

“You sneaky little doll. I love this spunky side of you. But it’s best you not forget who’s in charge,” Tony lunged at you and pinned you down to the table. He began to suck on your exposed collar bone in hopes of leaving a hickey.

Though this scared you, you refused to give him the satisfaction of reacting the way he wanted you to, “This is what you call love?”

Bucky sprang into action, running into the room as quick as physically possible. 

“It’s not even been a day, and you’re already willing enough to question my love for you? How sad,” he said while stroking your cheek.

Bucky busted through the door and threw Tony off of you, into the arms of two officers w who dragged him off. He pulled you into his chest, “You did great, Y/N.”

You let out a breath of relief, enjoying being wrapped around you, “Did you see me? Was my acting good? I wasn’t scared at all!”

He shook his head with a smile, “You were so brave.” He looked up to see Steve giving him a judgmental look. Bucky pursed his lips and pulled away, putting his hands on your shoulders.

“Is something wrong?” you asked.

“Yes, there is, Y/N,” Steve said from behind you, “you two are becoming too close, and your case is still open. This kind of behavior is unacceptable.”

“What do you mean?” You hopped off the table, confused.

He stood tall, “I mean that Officer Barnes is no longer assigned to your case.”

“Sir, I don’t understand. We haven’t done anything wrong.”

“Y/N, I understand that you’re upset, but it could cause more trouble for you if you get involved.”

You looked back at Bucky; he gave you a look of certainty, and you sighed. “Yes, I understand.”

“Good. Since your living situation has been compromised, I think that it’d be best if we situate you in a nearby hotel with 24 hour surveillance. That way we’d be able to reach you faster if anything happens. This time, I’ll have 2 officers assigned to you. Officer Laufeyson will be taking you to the hotel as soon as you’re ready.”

You pushed past Steve, not even looking back, “I’ll take my leave then.” You made your way to the lobby, meeting a man with jet black hair.

“Hello, Miss Y/N. I’m Officer Laufeyson. Are you ready to take depart?”

You nodded, shaking his hand, and following him along to his car.

This officer seemed rather reserved, yet had a certain charm about him that made you think that there may have been much to learn about him as he moved about the hotel room with such poise. He seemed to notice you watching him, and smiled at you.

“Is there something you’d like to say?” he asked.

You shook your head, walking out to the balcony. There was a small table with two chairs overlooking the pool and recreational area. You took a seat and watched as people moved about.

“You’re not very talkative from what I’ve observed,” he said from within the room, leaning back and relaxing in an armchair.

“I am. I just don’t think that there’s much to talk about,” you responded.

“Well, seeing as we’ll be spending the next 12 hours together, I believe it’s be wise to become acquainted with one another. Don’t you agree?”

“There’s not much to know about me. You’ve probably already read my case file. Everything about me is in that.”

He joined you, taking a seat in the other chair, “I honestly doubt that, but why don’t we build your trust in me first so you can open up to me later. What would you like to learn about me?”

You looked at him with a soft smile, “Why are you so intent on learning about me? Your chief already took one officer off of my case for getting too close to me, so why do you insist on trying?”

“Just as I said, we’ll be spending plenty of time together. I don’t care what the chief says; he’s not currently here to stop me, is he? We should get to know each other so that we don’t just sit in awkward silence for so long.”

“Fine then, what’s your first name?”

He smiled, satisfied with your compliance, “Loki. It’s Nordic.”

“I like it. Do you mind if I call you that instead of Officer Laufeyson?”

“Be my guest. It makes the ‘getting to know you’ process go much faster if we call each other by our first names.”

“I suppose you’re right. What would you like to ask me now?”

“This is a very strange question, but what movie title do you think describes your life?”

“Oh that’s easy. I’d have to go with 'Tangled.’”

“The children’s movie? Why is that?”

“I was hidden away from society by some evil person, and I’m finally getting to explore the world again. Plus, I’ve got big sad eyes like the main character.”

He laughed at your attempt of a joke and the game of questions continued. He was definitely an interesting man, this Loki character. The two of you hadn’t realized that it night had fallen until there came a knock at the door. Loki looked through the peephole, his gun at the ready. He instantly relaxed and unlocked the door.

“I suppose this means farewell until I see you tomorrow then, Y/N,” Loki said as he placed a kiss on your hand before opening the door, “I leave it to you to take watch her closely.”

“Of course I will, Laufeyson. You have a goodnight now,” a familiar voice said.

Loki waved goodbye and walked off, revealing none other than your good friend Officer Barnes. He stood in the doorway with a cheeky smile, his arms folded, and waiting for your reaction. You hopped up from your seat and attack him with a hug. The way you tackled him caused him to grunt, followed by a laugh.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky is back, but only during the night shifts while Loki has you for the entire day. Loki doesn't seem to follow the rules very well and takes you to see your friends with a lot of fun to come with him.

You hopped up from your seat and attack him with a hug. The way you tackled him caused him to grunt, followed by a laugh. 

“What the hell are you doing here?” you asked, smacking him in the shoulder.

“It took a whole lot of begging, believe me. Steve only let me under one condition: that we keep our distance. I’m not going to change anything about this, though. I want to make you feel as comfortable as possible.”

You tilted your head, “Oh, that’s sweet! Are you okay with disobeying his orders?”

He closed the door behind himself then plopped right down on one of the beds, letting out an elongated sigh, “But Steve isn’t around, so who cares?”

“You sound just like Loki,” you said as you looked through your luggage for your pajamas.

He lifted his head, “Who? Laufeyson? Did you two do a lot of talking?”

You nodded gleefully, “Yeah! I’m making new friends, and it’s so much fun!”

Bucky didn’t like the idea of another guy being friendly with you, especially if it was Loki Laufeyson. He heard that he was a real hit with the ladies in the department, but never even gave them the time of day. The fact that he was even making an effort to talk to you was an odd change in his behavior. But he didn’t want to think about it too much since he was probably doing it just for the job. He propped himself against the headboard, “It’s good that you’re seeing the bright side of your situation.”

You shrugged, “I’m just glad that I still get to hang around with you for half the day.”

Bucky felt his heart skip a beat hearing that you enjoyed spending time with him, “Uh, I guess that’s a cool part.”

“I’m going to hit the showers, okay? I haven’t showered for, like, two days and I’m starting to smell rank. You can go ahead and watch TV or something,” you said, stepping into the bathroom.

He chuckled and grabbed the TV remote, “Sounds like a good plan.”

“Good.”

You locked the door and stripped your clothes off. It was then that you looked at yourself in the mirror, seeing all the damage done to your body over length of your relationship with the addition of the hickey he managed to plant earlier today. You gently touched it, and instantly felt dirty and disgusting. There was nothing you wanted more than to rid your body of all his branding.

You turned the shower on, testing the water with your hand, and pulling it back as it was steaming hot. Once you adjusted the temperature to your liking, you stepped into the glass shower. You indulged the flowing water as you felt it run over every part of your body, cleansing you of all the dirt built up over the span of the two days. It felt like you hadn’t been able to shower in ages with how nice it felt against your skin. The shampoo provided by the hotel smelled of cherry blossoms, which delighted you so greatly when compared to the blandly scented vanilla Tony supplied to you as his “favorite.”

It was then that you realized that you stood up to Tony for the first time. You smiled at your accomplishment as it felt like you were being freed from the shackles of an unhealthy relationship. The past was being washed down the drain along with every negative feeling that pertained your former captor.

You turned the shower off and reached for a towel, drying your hair as much as you could, followed by the rest of your body. The way you looked in the mirror felt just a little purer than the few minutes prior. It was refreshing to feel reborn as someone stronger.

As you slipped on your overly sized T-shirt, you searched for your underwear to realize that you forgot to grab a pair. You stood there for a second, biting your lip, realizing that there was only one thing you could do. You opened the door just a crack so you could stick your head through it, and Bucky smiled at you. “Hey, Buck, I have a really embarrassing favor to ask you.”

He muted the TV, and leaned forward, “Sure, what do you need?”

You took a deep breath, feeling your face get warmer as you asked, “Do you mind grabbing me a pair of panties from my suitcase? I forgot to grab one.”

Bucky instantly felt his face flush, “Sorry, um, what was that?”

You pursed your lips, and threw your head back in embarrassment, “Please don’t actually make me have to repeat that.”

“Uh, um, no! Sorry I’ll- I’ll just,” he shot up and looked through your bag to find a pair of rosy pink lace panties then rushing to hand them to you, “here.”

You grabbed that as quick as you could and slammed the door, “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

You slid them on, then your shorts over them, and covered your face with your hands, feeling just how warm you were. This was all you could think about as you dried your hair, groaning to be drowned out by the noisy hair dryer. This was the most embarrassing thing you’ve had to do in your entire life. Well, other than the time you streaked across Central Park when you were running away from an angry goose while hooking up with someone in the park as a teenager. Now that was the most embarrassing thing you did, also the last time you tried to hook up in a park.

As soon as you got out of the bathroom, you threw your dirty laundry in a bag, then rushed under the covers of your bed with your back turned towards Bucky. You wanted to avoid talking to Bucky at all costs after such a life altering interaction.

“You going to bed, huh kiddo?” Bucky asked nervously.

“Uh, yeah. It’s been an eventful day, so I’m kind of just super tired now,” you said with the covers over your head.

“Alright, cool,” he said, sounding sort of disappointed.

You closed your eyes with the intent on going to sleep only to be consumed by thoughts of what happened. All you could do was toss and turn while Bucky awkwardly watched you, thinking that this must have been a normal thing you did. Suddenly you fell out of bed, feeling so much heat from breathing heavily, “I need some air.” You got onto your feet then exited onto the balcony. Instant relief from a nice breeze hitting your face granted you peace of mind for just a second.

“Hey,” Bucky said as he joined you, startling you and making you jump.

“Geez, why’d you have to sneak up on me like that?” you asked.

He chortled, leaning against the railing, “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. Just wanted to check up on you to see if you’re okay.”

This kind gesture chipped away your previous feelings and you leaned on his shoulder, “Yeah, I’m fine. It was just weird having to ask you to hand me my underwear.”

Once again, he let out a small laugh, “That was definitely a memorable experience. Then again, so is every moment with you.

You squeezed his arm affectionately, "Oh shut up.”

“No you,” he retorted, and it annoyed you greatly.

The following morning, you woke up to see Loki reading a book in the armchair. He looked up and greeted you with a smile once he realized that you were awake. Loki strutted out of your line of vision before appearing in front of you with a tray of food.

“What’s this?” you asked as you sit up, allowing him to place it on your lap.“

He sat at the foot of your bed, "I hope you don’t mind, but I ordered room service so you wouldn’t have to wait too long when you woke up.”

“Wow, Loki. Thank you so much,” you said as you removed the metal dome.

“It’s no problem. You have a big day ahead of you, so I wanted to make sure you have enough energy for the day.”

You covered your mouth with your hand while chewing and spoke, “What do you mean?”

He smiled and tilted his head, “I just think that being cooped up in a small hotel room like this would be very boring, so I’m going to sneak you out to see your friends.”

“Really? You’re willing to do that for me?”

“Of course! What’s the point of being freed from someone who was essentially holding you captive, only to be confined to hide from said person? You’re a much easier target if you just sit here. Ever hear of hiding in plain sight? That’s what I plan to do.”

“What about Chief Rogers?”

“What the Chief doesn’t know, won’t kill him.”

You smiled and listened as he explained what he had planned for the day ahead of you. He just seemed so passionate about everything, and you couldn’t help but appreciate how he took the information you told him last night then used it to plan your activities. Plus, he looked rather handsome in casual clothing.

“Go ahead and shower then get dressed when you’re finished. I’ll give your friends at the doughnut shop a call to let them know we’re coming,” he said while carrying your empty tray into the hallway. You didn’t know exactly what came over you, but you found yourself hugging him. He returned the gesture, rubbing your back comfortably while doing so, “A simple thank you would have sufficed, but I think I like this much better.”

You snapped out of it and pulled back, “I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me. I just feel so- what’s the word? Ah, so grateful.”

“It’s quite alright. I just appreciate that you’ve been so compliant with me.”

You blushed and unpacked what you planned to wear, double checking for everything so last night’s events would not replay.

“I brought you some makeup your friend Nebula said you would be using. It’s all in the top drawer, if you choose to use it. I think you look fantastic without it though,” he said from the other side of the door.

This man was, very apparently, some sort of Godsend. You hadn’t even realized until now that you had gone without makeup for a while because Tony thought it was a waste of money, and now you had the opportunity to use it to hide your bruises. Not only the black eye, but the ones in your body that were still visible with clothes on. It was like Tony had never even touched you, other than your busted lip.

“Are you ready?” Loki asked with his arm extended out to you.

You wrapped yours around him, and nodded, “Yes, let’s go.”

Pietro ended up being the first one to hug you since you entered from the back entrance, and he was taking out the trash. He had gotten taller and gained a bit of muscle mass in your absence. He cupped your face in his hands, “Oh look at you! You’re so pretty! Oh, and you’re so skinny! Have you been eating properly?”

You chucked, “No, but I’m getting better.”

“Come, let’s go inside. Wanda and Nebula are waiting,” he tugged you along then stopped to look as Loki, “you’re sure that Steve won’t be coming in today?”

Loki nodded, “Yes, he’s most likely very tied up with Mr. Stark’s case at the moment.”

“Good,” he continued forward and took you through the kitchen, then to the front part of the shop where Wanda and Nebula were ringing up customers, “Girls, look who’s here!”

The two of them squealed with excitement, and hugged you. It was rare for Nebula to show this emotional range, but it was nice to see her so happy.

“Oh thank you so much, Officer Laufeyson! You doing this really means a lot to us,” Wanda said.

“It’s really my pleasure. Please call me Loki,” he responded with a slight bow, “but are you sure that you’re okay with the risks of being caught up in the crossfire?”

Nebula shot a glare at him, “Are you sure that you want to be questioning me?”

He gulped, “No ma'am, my apologies for overstepping.”

Pietro hopped up to sit on the counter, “Never question Neb unless you want to stop living.”

Loki nodded, “Understood.”

After telling them about how you stood up to Tony, they commended you for your bravery as you ate some of the gourmet doughnuts they prepared for you. Then they brought up that Loki could bring you every day for 4 hours, at the most, to work there.

“Really, if you’re able to, I’d like you to start working here, Y/N. You could work in the kitchen so that no one knows you’re here,” Pietro said.

You shook your head, “I don’t see that happening. I don’t think that Loki would want to sit and watch me make doughnuts every day.”

“Nonsense! I would love to. I’d even like to help make them. I mean, if you’d let me, Pietro,” Loki said confidently.

Pietro hopped down, placing a hand on Loki’s shoulder with a smile, “The more the merrier! What do you say, Y/N? Want to join our team?”

“I don’t know guys,” you responded, “I haven’t done anything on my own in such a long time, so I feel like I’ll be a slow learner.”

Wanda smacked your shoulder lightly, “Don’t worry about that! Neb and I can teach you. Well, at least I can.”

Nebula shook her head, “I’m not good with having patience, so I’ll take my chances and stay in the front, keeping people distracted.”

You clenched your fists, thinking it over one last time, “Okay, fine. I’ll work here. It would be a fun learning experience.”

They collectively cheered, and the fun chatter continued until Loki said that it was time to go. The next place you were due to go was an interactive art museum.

It must have been a slow day since there was a small amount of people actually there. The colors used in each exhibit were so vivid and eye-catching. Every piece was fun, and unique in terms of creativity. The rain room enticed you the most as the music in that room was slow and romantic, it was very dimly lit which made you feel even more relaxed.

Loki tapped your shoulder to get your attention. He extended his hand to you while bowing, “Would you care to dance with me, Miss Y/N?”

You grabbed his hand and curtsied, “I would love to, Officer Laufeyson.”

The two of you began to slow dance to the music that could barely be heard over the loud, artificial rain. It seemed almost like magic that no matter where you moved, the water did not touch you. Loki looked at you with a kind smile, while you looked at him the same way. He seemed as mesmerized in you as you were in him. The atmosphere was perfect for lovers. It seemed that everything was just right as you found yourself longing to kiss him, but it never happened.

Upon returning to your hotel room, Loki suggested that you remove your makeup just in case Bucky questioned it. You did just as he said, and found him asleep on the mattress when you exited the bathroom. You sneaked over to the side of the bed, and knelt down.

“How’re you supposed to watch over me if you’re asleep?” You whispered. He looked so peaceful and you slowly crept your face over his. You closed your eyes and began to lean in.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky is getting jealous because of your developing relationship with Loki, so he decides to break the rules as well to attempt to win you over.

You stopped yourself, dead in your tacks. It would be very wrong to kiss him, and you knew it very well. So you backed away slowly from him, shaking your head once you realized that you had only met him yesterday, and you were already feeling something for him. You took a seat on the floor and turned on the TV, waiting for Bucky to arrive for his shift at 7.

Loki was woken up by Bucky knocking on the door, and apologized for falling asleep on duty. Bucky didn’t take too kindly to that though, as he scolded Loki for being so inconsiderate. “How could you call asleep on the job, you fucking idiot? What if someone stormed in while you were asleep, and just killed you and Y/N? This is totally unacceptable, Laufeyson,” he exclaimed.

Loki nodded, “Yes, I understand. It was completely unprofessional, and I put her life in danger, as well as my own. I, honest to the gods, don’t know what came over me. I was just exhausted after such a long day. It won’t happen again. I take my job very seriously, and you know that. I just had a bit of an off day. Tell him, Y/N,” Loki said. He looked to you hopefully, and you knew you had to lie to Bucky.

Bucky seemed like he was going to explode, so you grabbed his arm gently. It calmed him down once you shook your head, clarifying that it was okay, “Buck, it’s really just been a really long day. There was some rumor going around that a sketchy character was snooping around, so we were paranoid the entire day. He was on high alert, so it just tired him out. Please don’t take it out on him.”

Bucky stood there for a second, just staring at you before poking Loki in the chest, “You’re lucky that I’m not going to report this to Chief. Just… make sure that you never do this again.”

“Absolutely, Barnes. It definitely won’t ever happen again,” he said very sincerely.

Bucky nodded and waved him off, sitting down on the armchair. He was clearly still very upset, but all he needed was a bit of time to cool down.

Both you and Loki stepped into the corridor to say goodbye to each other. “Well, I guess this means goodnight until tomorrow then, Loki,” you said while being pulled close to him.

“I suppose that it does. But you and I have work tomorrow, so I look forward to that,” he said with his arms tightly wrapped around you.

“It’ll be so much fun! I’m so excited to start working, especially with you.”

“Again, I’m really sorry for falling asleep on you. I just had so much fun at the museum with you that I hadn’t realized how much it drained me.”

“Don’t worry about it. I knew I wasn’t in any danger, and it was an honest mistake, so let’s move past it,” you separated from him.

He smiled confidently and kissed your hand, “I bid you goodnight then, my dear Y/N.”

You jokingly pushed his face away, “Goodnight Loki. See you tomorrow.”

You watched as he smiled at you in the elevator until the doors closed, then stepped inside where Bucky was still sitting with a stoic expression. There was clear tension in the air, so you knelt on the floor next to him. “Bucky, what’s wrong?”

“I really don’t like how you defended him. You two are getting really close,” the way he said this reminded you of Tony, and it caused you to react instinctively by throwing yourself on him.

“I’m sorry, I’ll stop talking to him, I swear,” you cried out.

Bucky instantly regretted saying it once he felt you trembling against him. He sighed, “Y/N, look at me.” He gently pulled you off of him and you realized what you had done.

“Oh, Bucky, I’m sorry. It was just-”

“No, don’t apologize. I overstepped, and I had no right to say something like that,” he sat you down, gently, on the arm of the chair, “you have every right to do whatever you want. Like I said, you’re your own person with thoughts, feelings, and emotions. Who am I to try to police your relationships with other people? A cop?”

You chuckled at his joke and laid across his lap, “No, no. It’s just my stupid tendencies that Tony basically printed onto my brain. It’s kind of embarrassing, actually. I really am getting too close to Loki much too quickly.”

“What do you mean?” He began to play a beat on your stomach like a drum.

“I can trust you enough to not keep secrets from you, right?”

“I mean, I’d like to hope so. It’s not like I really have anyone to tell.”

“Good then. Loki sneaked me out to the doughnut shop and I’m going to start working there 4 hours every day.”

He began patting faster as he said nothing while he thought about it, “Well, that’s actually a pretty good idea so that you can adjust to being independent again. I feel like working around your friends will help you find yourself again.”

“So you’re not upset?”

“No, why would I?” he shook his head with a smile.

You bit your lip, “There’s more to it.”

“Lay it on me, Y/N.”

“Well, I think we went out on a date today?”

“What?” Bucky stopped playing his joyful beat and looked at you.

“He took me to an interactive art museum today. We slow danced for a bit. And,” you took a short pause, “I almost kissed him while he was asleep.”

“What?!”

“I stopped myself. I promise. I know it’s just because this is a new feeling that I might have artificial feelings for him. Getting involved with anyone romantically would put them in harm’s way, so I wouldn’t have even tried anything.”

“So, you like Laufeyson?”

“Well, no, but yes. I’m not sure.”

“Shit, I’m falling behind then,” he said jokingly.

“You better work hard to catch up then, mister,” you joked back.

“You know what? You’re right. Let’s go swimming.”

You rolled off of him, onto the floor, and looked at him with a quizzical expression, “Are you serious? Right now? Isn’t it a bit dangerous to do that at night?”

He shook his head confidently, “Not at all. If anything, it’s safer. The pool is right in the middle of the hotel where everyone is walking past, so there are plenty of witnesses. Tony would expect you to be safe wherever you are, under close watch at night.”

You sat on top of your legs and questioned him once more, “You’re sure about this?”

He leaned forward so that he was inches away from your face, “I can bet my life on it.”

You smiled and raced to grab your swimsuit, “Do you even have anything to swim in?”

He smirked and raised a brow, “You don’t have a problem with me swimming in my boxers, do you?”

You pursed your lips and walked into the bathroom to change, avoiding answering Bucky’s question.

The chilling sensation enthralled you entirely as you submerged yourself in the tempered pool. You opened your eyes to see Bucky in front of you, under the surface of the water. He pointed upwards and you knew that he meant that he wanted to resurface. The two of you laughed and raced each other around the pool, not a word being exchanged, but maintained communication nonetheless. By the time you tired each other out, you sat on the steps of the pool together. The two of you burst out into laughter after you finally caught your breath.

Once you stopped and watched him just float on the surface of the pool, it was then that you noticed that Bucky’s left arm was a prosthetic. He noticed you gawking at it and held it out to you, “Curious about it, huh?” You took his hand, and the fingers wrapped around yours, taking you by surprise. He dragged you through the water so that your body was against his. “I lost it to a bomb when I was on the defusing squad. At least that’s what I tell most people, but really, I was really stupid as a teenager. I got cut up by some rusty barbed wire when I tried sneaking into an abandoned building to smoke weed and it ended up getting really infected. You can piece together the rest.”

You studied it closer seeing where the joints were connected, and where his arm was cut off.

“I learned my lesson. I lost most of my friends since I lashed out so often because I was so frustrated with how weak I’d become. That’s when I met Steve. He encouraged me to work and get stronger. When he joined the NYPD, it took me a while to pass the physical exam, but now here I am,” he said while you were still distracted by it, “you think it’s really weird, don’t you?”

You shook your head, “Not at all! I’m just trying to figure out how I didn’t notice it before. I think that it’s good that it taught you to be a better person, if I’m being honest.”

Bucky appreciated that you didn’t see him as any less for his handicap. He smiled, “Okay, that’s enough serious talk, let’s get back to the fun.” He launched you away from him and chuckled.

“Freedom gets better every moment I’m introduced to activities once forbidden to me,” you said as you swam back over to him.

He scoffed, “He really banned you from swimming? What was his bullshit excuse for that?”

You tried your best to imitate Tony’s voice, “You should never be able to have your body viewed for anyone’s pleasure other than mine.”

“That is the lamest excuse I’ve ever heard in my life.”

You shrugged, “He’d make up anything to make sure I had no personal freedom.” Suddenly your stomach growled and you groaned.

“What’s up?”

“The stomach gods require a sacrifice of food,” you attempted to say in a stupid deep voice.

He laughed and lifted himself out of the pool, “Let’s go back to the room and order room service then. Did Laufeyson not feed you at all?”

“He got me breakfast, and we ate doughnuts. That’s about it, though. Pretty sure he just got overly excited about the museum. What time is it now?” you swam over to the edge and pulled your self up.

Bucky threw a towel at you and checked his phone. “It’s around 2 am. We’ve been swimming for 6 hours, so that’s got to be some sort of record,” he stated while drying himself off, “how could anyone forget about food? I look forward to every meal.”

“I mean, the museum was pretty darn fun,” you dried yourself off and started walking back to the room with him.

Once you were settled in after showering, you realized that Bucky had a dilemma, “Hey Officer Barnes, what are you going to wear in place of your underwear? I’m pretty sure that the feeling of going commando with jeans is not very favorable.”

He stopped looking through the room service menu, staring at you with a mischievous grin, “Since you were so embarrassed because of what happened last night, why don’t I wear a pair of your underwear? Then we’ll be even.”

You tried your very best not to burst out laughing, but ended up doing so anyway. It got to the point where you were even shedding tears from how hilarious he looked while wearing a pair of grandma panties you only ever used on your period.

“I expected something a bit nicer, but I guess this works,” he said while checking himself out in a mirror.

The fact that you were tired to the point of no return, past 3 am now, made your mind turn to mush and everything he did was hilarious because of it. “You honestly just take the cake when it comes to making me feel such a wide range of emotions, Bucky,” you said as you engorged the food you had ordered, “but please hurry up and put your clothes on, so I don’t have to look at you wear my underwear anymore.”

He did as you requested, and joined you in eating, “Did I catch up to Laufeyson?”

You nibbled at the inside of your cheek as you assessed everything that had happened within the span of 7 hours, “Not quite, but you’re getting pretty close. Maybe take me out for Uncle Ben’s Deluxe Cheeseburger again sometime, and we’ll talk about this again.” You winked and continued to eat.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony is up to something with a traitor among your tight knit relationships. It's your first day working at the doughnut shop, and you're having fun while Steve discusses Bucky's actions from the last night.

“Everything is in order?” Tony asked the silhouette.

“Yes, Mr. Stark. All the pieces are in place,” he replied.

Tony’s malicious grin spread wide, “Excellent. Await my order, and it should all fall perfectly into place.”

**********

Loki knocked on the door, patiently waiting for Bucky to answer the door. He knew you were still asleep since you were never awake before 8. Loki enjoyed seeing you asleep so peacefully, so he didn’t really mind it too much.

Bucky slowly moved you off of his thighs and kissed your forehead. You fell asleep on his lap while watching TV last night, and didn’t bother moving over to his own. The stuffed his dry boxers in his pocket before he grabbed his phone and answered the door. “Hey, Laufeyson. She might be asleep for a little longer today, she stayed up pretty late last night but that have been my fault. Take care, and don’t fall asleep, alright?”

Loki smiled, “Morning, Barnes. Actually, I need to speak to the both of you. There is some important news that I think she will need both of us here for.”

“What is it?” Bucky stepped aside and allowed him to enter the room, closing the door once Loki passed him.

“It’s about her court date,” Loki smiled and sat down next to you with a gentle smile while Bucky glared with his arms crossed. He shook you lightly, “Y/N, it’s time to get up now. I know you’re tired, but this is important.” His voice was soft and gentle as he spoke, yet enough to have you flutter your eyes open.

“Loki? Can’t I just have 5 more minutes?” You rubbed your eyes sleepily and stretched your back, “Bucky? You’re still here?” Your vision focused to reveal two men on either side of you, smiling warmly at you.

Bucky sat on other side of your bed, helping you sit up, “Come on, Y/N. It’s about Tony. Go ahead Laufeyson.”

“Yes, thank you, Barnes. I don’t mean to stress you out so early in the morning, but we have a confirmed court date for Stark’s trial,” Loki said while taking hold of your hand.

This statement caused your heart to stop for a second, “Oh, right. I forgot that we needed one since I’m pressing charges. When is it?”

“It’s set for 2 months from today,” he responded.

“Oh. 2 months? That’s, uh- oh boy.” Your hands started to clam up, so you pulled your hand away from Loki which caused him to shift into a grave expression.

“If it’s any consolation, you are guaranteed a win.”

Bucky nudged your leg, “You’ll bring in the big bucks- and I’m not talking about me.” His joke caused you to chuckle which lightened the mood of the room by a great deal. Bucky grave your leg an affectionate squeeze with his lips pursed as he stood up, “I should get going now, if you’re good here.”

Loki stood up to shake his hand, “Ah, yes. Thank you, Barnes.”

“No problem,” he firmly shook Loki’s hand then looked to you, “I’ll see you later. Have a great first day of work.”

You got on your knees and held your arms open, beckoning for a hug that he complied to, “Thanks Bucky. I’ll see ya tonight. Get some rest, alright?”

“Yeah, yeah. Bye, you two,” he exited the room feeling a bit nervous about whether he would return to you with your heart still partially in his hands or not.

Loki laughed breathlessly as you struggled with the mixer, sending flour all over yourself. You desperately put your hand out to keep any from getting in your eyes. This managed to cause a great deal of the white powder to deflect onto Loki. When you finally managed to stop the mixer, both of you stared at each other in shock for a moment. The two of you burst into laughter, seeing each other in the midst of a flour-y mess.

“Alright! That’s okay, let’s just clean up and try again,” Wanda, who was also covered, said optimistically, “maybe a bit slower though.”

“Sorry about this Wanda,” you said as you cleaned yourself up.

“That’s quite alright, Y/N. I understand that it may take you a while to get used to it. You’re learning, so patience is the key to teaching.”

Loki coughed and helped clear the area of the debris, “I’d like to take a go at it, if you don’t mind. I’ve always been fascinated with the stereotypical cop’s favorite treat, including myself.”

You backed away and raised your hands slightly, “By all means. Go ahead, Loki.”

Loki smiled and prepared the ingredients with the measurements Wanda told him to use. As you watched him prepare the dough, you noticed how he did so with passion. He rolled his sleeves up once he emptied the thoroughly mixed contents onto the table to knead it. You couldn’t help but notice how prominent the muscles on his arms were. Watching him seemed so mesmerizing as it seemed like he was just so intent of perfecting the art of making the doughnuts.

“Great first try, Loki! These are perfect! Are you certain that this is your first time making doughnuts,” she asked suspiciously.

You could tell how bashful he was as he rubbed the back of his head, “I assure you that I haven’t had any experience with making anything of the sort before. I’ve only dabbled in reheating take out food.”

“You’re a natural! I hope you can work with us, even when the case is over,” Wanda lightly nudged him in the side, “You’ll even get to eat as much as you want for free.”

He smiled, “I hope I can as well. Being alongside Y/N is always a delight.”

The mention of your name snapped you from your daze, “Oh! Same goes for you.”

Wanda let out a small sigh, “Okay, Y/N. Are you ready to give it another go?”

You laughed nervously and nodded.

Bucky rubbed his temples vigorously before returning to typing up his report on last night’s watch. The stress of the case was becoming too much for him to handle since he was losing so many hours of sleep over it. As much as he loved spending every single night with you, he couldn’t wait for the case to be over. Only then could he be with you without getting into any trouble with Steve.

That didn’t really matter right now, though. There was word of a rat within the station, and Bucky immediately suspected that it might be Laufeyson. There was something about that guy that just seemed really off to Bucky. Either way, he knew he would never try anything so close to Stark’s trial.

“Hey Bucky, how you holding up?” Steve startled Bucky when he firmly grasped his shoulders.

He relaxed the moment after, releasing a deep sigh, “I’m alright, Steve. Just finishing up the report.”

“Anything out of the ordinary happen last night?”

Bucky tensed slightly, “No, not at all. It seemed pretty normal.”

“Really?” Steve’s grip tightened, “I heard from a few witnesses that the two of you had a little late night swim. But that couldn’t be true right?”

“Damn it, I knew it was risky. Steve, listen. I-”

“Bucky it’s alright.”

“I know that it was against your orders, but- wait, what?”

Steve chuckled and folded his arms, “It’s okay Bucky. I realized how rash I was acting, thanks to Nebula. She reminded me that Y/N was already being restricted by Stark, so she needed a little freedom to adjust to the real world again. I know that now. Besides, did you really think you could pull the wool over my eyes? I’m the Chief for a reason.”

“Thanks for understanding, man. I didn’t like lying to you, believe me. I just didn’t want to make Y/N feel like she was an object rather than a real person.”

“I get it, Buck. You don’t need to explain yourself. Though, it seems that you have a bit of competition with Loki.”

Loki motioned for Steve to come closer, so he could whisper, “I’ve been meaning to speak about him with you, Steve. I really don’t trust that guy.”

“What do you mean?” Steve leaned on the table.

“I don’t know, but there is really just something weird about how he has only ever showed interest in Y/N. There are plenty of beautiful women who pine over him, so why Y/N?”

Steve shook his head with a smile, “Bucky, I think you’re just jealous. Laufeyson is just as loyal to the force as you and I. If he was the one conspiring with Stark, I would know.”

Bucky leaned back in his chair, “Maybe you’re right. He is pretty damn dedicated to the job. I hope he doesn’t woo Y/N more than me.”

Steve gave him a pat on the back, “I’m cheering for you, buddy. Just remember that Stark is a dangerous man. Get too close right now, and something might happen to you,” he paused, “you’re one of my best friends, Bucky. I’d hate to see you get hurt.”

“Thanks Steve, I’ll keep that in mind.”

Steve nodded then began walking away from Bucky’s cubicle, “Alright. Finish up, and head home. You deserve some sleep before tonight, Barnes.”

“Yes, sir.” Bucky returned to his report.

Loki gave you a piggyback ride to the room, and laid you down on your bed. It appeared that you had fallen asleep on the ride home. Seeing you asleep so peacefully caused a ruckus of emotions within him, but he knew he had to keep them maintained. Losing control over himself was the very last thing he wanted to happen.

The both of you ended up being there all day, making doughnuts, because you kept making mistake after mistake. He didn’t mind though, watching you struggle made him happy. Only because it meant that he would get to assist you when Wanda had to step away. Helping you, and gaining your trust, was all that he wanted to do. Loki tucked you in, removing your shoes for you as he did so.

He took a seat on the other bed and awaited Bucky’s arrival for their short exchange, followed by bidding each other farewell. Bucky was his the only thing standing in his way, but Loki knew he already had an upper hand since he spent more time awake with you while you were more conscious and aware.

When Bucky arrived, Loki was slightly disappointed to separate from you without saying goodbye. He then went to the station to file his report as quickly as he could before doing his nightly routine.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You've been incident free for so long that everyone thinks that it's time for a celebration, and everyone is having a good time until...

The days went by quickly as a month had already passed by. Your days with Loki, working together and visiting various places you’d always imagines going to. Luckily, your skills in the kitchen improved, much to Pietro’s delight when you began producing new types of doughnut treat. Then there were your wild nights with Bucky where he’d speed around the city with you and find hidden gem food places. Every night was an adventure that you could always look forward to. You had completely forgotten about your entire Tony Stark ordeal, but that wasn’t much of a bad thing for you.

Tonight, Bucky and yourself had decided to visit a higher class restaurant with Steve, Loki, Nebula, Wanda, and Pietro to celebrate a whole month of avoiding any accidents or attempts to harm you. But of course Bucky and you were lost, and late to the party. Somehow, you had ended up in a completely unfamiliar area.

“How can we be lost? Don’t you, like, have all the streets memorized, or at least use the GPS?” you asked with annoyance in your voice.

He rested his hand on your shoulder, looking to you with a calming expression, “Cool your jets, Y/N. I swear to you that we’re not lost; we’re just taking a little bit of a detour.”

You looked out the window, not saying a word to him.

“Oh, come on. Y/N, please don’t be that way- oh no. No. Baby, what are you doing?” The squad car suddenly came to a rolling stop, which he managed to pull to the side of the road.

“You’re fucking with me, Bucky. This cannot be happening. The car is not out of gas,” your rage meter was slowly filling up as the night progressed.

“Well, you’re right about that,” he said, lips pursed.

“Then what’s the problem?”

“The battery is dead,” he took his keys out of the ignition, getting out of the car to make a phone call.

How could this happen? Of all the nights, one to celebrate you, Bucky was causing problems. You weren’t angry with him, just slightly annoyed. If Loki had been the one with you, you majorly doubted that this would have happened.

He opened your door, “Well, I guess we’re walking.”

“What do you mean by that?” You asked as you stepped out, onto the sidewalk.

He grabbed your hand and began walking, “I mean exactly that.”

“But, we’re still lost, Buck. How are we going to get there.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that. I have a sneaking suspicion that we’ll be just fine,” he winked as he continued into a park.

There was smooth jazz being played in the distance and beautiful strings of light connected the trees and dim lamp posts. You slowly felt your anger melt away when you took in the setting. It was honestly perfect. Bucky remained silent as the source of the music grew closer and closer until the band was in front of us. They were dressed in nice suits, which honestly seemed strange.

“Care to dance with me, Y/N?” Bucky suddenly asked, grinning from ear to ear.

You felt your cheeks flush, “Here? In the middle of the park? We’re going to be even more late!”

He shook his head, reeling you into his arms, “They can wait just a little longer, can’t they?”

“Okay, maybe for just a minute,” you rested your head on his shoulder as the two of you waltzed together to the romantic song being played. It was absolute bliss to be doing something so romantic, with Officer James Barnes nonetheless. To your surprise, he was surprisingly talented. As the song came to an end, he dipped you. For a moment, all you could do was stare into each other’s eyes, until he pulled you up. For some reason, you were expecting a kiss since your faces grew closer and closer.

Someone tapped your shoulder out of nowhere. “Pardon, but I would like the next dance. If you would allow me to,” a familiar voice said. You turned to face none other than Loki. He was dressed up in a beautiful all black suit, but he wasn’t the only one there. The rest of your companions stood behind him, gazing at you with loving eyes.

You broke from Bucky’s gasp, giving Wanda and Nebula a long needed embrace, “I’m so confused. What the hell is going on?”

“This was all Loki’s idea. He told us how you’ve always wanted to go to some sort of dance, so we all saved up to rent out the park for the evening,” Steve said with his arm around Nebula.

You turned to Loki, “You shouldn’t have! This is so amazing,” then you backed up to look at all of them collectively, “thank all of you. You really didn’t have to do this.”

“This was well-deserved! Everything you’ve done so far has led you to this night. There is no other way that I want this to go than you here with all of us,” Pietro said, his hands lightly gripping your shoulders with a smile.

“Aw, Piety,” you hugged him tightly, followed by everyone else in a mass group hug.

“Alright, enough with the sappy stuff. Let’s dance,” Nebula stated.

The jazz band started playing again as all of your friends danced together as a group. Regardless of who was dancing with whom, it was just a whole lot of fun. There was no place you’d rather be than with your closest friends, having the absolute time of your lives. It was like nothing could go wrong, and nothing would ever go wrong again. That was until disaster struck.

A hooded man strolled up to Bucky in the midst of the dancing and said, “The king sends his regards” He proceeded to shoot him in the side then aimed for Loki to shoot again. Instead, Loki bravely lunged at the attacker, causing him to shoot a tree instead. This frightened the hooded man, so the coward began running off. Loki and Steve chased after him, hoping to catch him.

The gunshot was so loud and distinctive that people not even in the park screamed. Bucky fell into your arms, slowly lowering to the ground. His blood began to soak into your golden dress and you were sent into shock while Bucky laid in your arms. He looked at you calmly, but your tears dripped onto his face. “Call an ambulance right now, Wanda,” you said.

“On it,” she responded.

You looked at the entry point, and felt his back for an exit wound to find that there wasn’t one, “Nebula, apply pressured to his wound with this,” you tossed her your scarf, “it’s clean, so don’t worry.”

Nebula nodded, doing just as you directed.

“Pietro, go over to the sidewalk where the ambulance will arrive, so you can lead them to where we are.”

“Yes, Ma'am,” he said before dashing off.

“Wow, I’ve never seen you so serious before, Y/N. It’s kind of scary,” Bucky joked. He made and attempt to chuckle, but coughed and grimaced the moment after.

You threaded your fingers through his hair, “Refrain from moving, Bucky. You should know that,” you looked to Nebula, “keep that pressure strong, Neb. We might be here a while.”

“I know. This isn’t my first time getting shot, so you should stop crying now. I promise you that I’ll be just fine,” he placed a trembling hand on your cheek. He was terrified right now, but he couldn’t let you know that. It would only scared you even more.

“They should be here in 10 minutes,” Wanda said when she knelt down next to you.

Steve and Loki chased after the hooded man, weaving around people and hopping over obstacles. There was no way they’d allow this man to get away unscathed. They ran through dark, puddled alleyways, and into the stairwell of a dark apartment building. He jumped from rooftop to rooftop; they continued to follow closely behind. They came so close to catching him until he slipped into a van with no visible license plate.

“God fucking damn it,” Steve kicked over some garbage cans in frustration, “who the fuck tipped them off on our location? We made sure to mislead them to the restaurant.” Steve pinned Loki against the wall, pulling at his collar to the point where it was almost ripping, “I don’t trust you, Laufeyson. You’re the one who planned all of this. How do I know that you didn’t plan that, too?”

“Chief, I can see that you’re upset, but now is not the time to blame me. The shooter took his aim at me as well, or are you forgetting that?”

Steve pushed him harder, “But you’re completely unscathed while Barnes is bleeding out.”

“Yes, because I defended myself. Why would I do something like this? We’re all friends here, and I’d been looking forward to this night for a week,” he defended.

Steve released Loki to the sound of his phone go off. A text from Nebula telling them to meet at the hospital. “Fine, I choose to believe you, for now. Let’s head to the hospital,” he said.

Bucky was set up in a hospital room after they performed the surgery to remove the bullet, and patch up his wound. He was unconscious, but you, Steve, and Loki remained in the room to watch him until he woke up.

“Y/N, I think that it’d be the best if Laufeyson took you back to the hotel to get your things. You’re moving out of the city this time. We should have done this from the very beginning, but we need to place you under witness protection,” Steve said when he took you aside to speak with you.

“What? After this, you want me to leave Bucky? Wouldn’t he want me here?” You protested.

“You’re the reason why he is here.” His words were bold. It was just enough to set you off.

“Fine,” you stormed off and Steve motioned for Loki to go after you.

Steve sighed and stepped back into the room where Bucky was still fast asleep, “I’m sorry, Buck. This never should have happened.” He continued staring at him for a few minutes until he received a call from the station, “Chief speaking. Wait, what? How did Stark manage to escape? Alert Laufeyson now!”

You sobbed into Loki’s shoulder as he rubbed your back soothingly in the dark hotel room, “I know, Y/N. I know.”

“This is all because of me, Loki! You should be seen with me.”

He cupped your face in his hands and bent down to look you in the eyes, “Hey, hey, no. Look at me. This isn’t your fault. It was all mine. I planned your celebration and I thought it would be safe. Apparently it wasn’t. This is my fault.”

You shook your head, “No! I got too close. I should have listened to Steve’s warning.”

“Y/N, calm down. We need to get out of here. This place isn’t safe,” he said.

“I- I can’t leave now! I have to wait for Bucky to wake up. I should leave alone, if anything. I don’t want you to get hurt because of me!”

Loki pursed his lips and thought for a moment, gazing down at your lips before his met yours. You yelped in surprise, but his kiss was surprisingly calming. You closed your eyes and kissed him back. He instantly pulled back right after.

“I’ve been wanting to do that since you almost kissed me when you thought I was asleep,” he whispered with a smile.

“You were awake? Why didn’t you tell me?” You smacked him lightly.

He chuckled, “I didn’t want to embarrass you. But now isn’t the time to talk about it. I’m not going anywhere without you, okay? Go get your things from the bathroom.” You nodded and rushed to stuff everything in a bag.

As much as you enjoyed that kiss, it was an inappropriate time to do it. Especially when you were in immediate danger after Bucky had been shot because of you. Steve was right from the beginning. Bucky should never have gotten involved with you.

As you exited the bathroom, you saw that Loki was sitting on the armchair, “What are you doing? Let’s go!”

Tony turned the chair to face you, “Crimson and gold suit you very nicely, my baby doll.” He grinned evilly and made a motion with his fingers.

You found that someone was restraining you while injecting something into your neck. His face wasn’t quite clear because the moonlight wasn’t hitting his face, but you instantly knew you had been played. Your eyelids began growing heavier and heavier. He supported you as you fell into his arms, and you finally saw his face clearly to confirm that it was him. You were in complete shock. “How could you do this?” you asked, your speech slightly slurred.

“I’m sorry, Y/N,” he said sincerely.

“Pietro,” you said right as you passed out.

Bucky’s eyes fluttered open and saw two blurred figures stood in front of him. He blinked a few times until the blobbed masses before him were revealed to be Chief Rogers and Laufeyson. Buck smile for a moment before realizing that their facial expressions were very grim. “What’s going on guys? Did something happen while I was under?” he asked.

Steve nudged Loki forward, and he looked back at him as to confirm that he wanted him to be the one to tell Bucky the news. Loki nodded and sighed as he looked back to Bucky as he explained the detrimental news, “Last night, after Y/N and I left to go pack at the hotel, Stark managed to escape-”

“What? Where’s Y/N? Is she safe?” Bucky sat up instantly, hurting himself in the process.

Loki stood with his mouth agape, staring at Bucky. His eyes welled up, causing Bucky to worry even more. “Please excuse me for a moment,” he turned and exited the room.

“Steve. Where is Y/N?” His voice was stern.

“Buck, I’m sorry. Stark had his men put Loki under, and kidnapped Y/N,” Steve said.

Bucky tore off the wires and tubes that were attached to him, standing up in an instant, “Then what the hell am I still doing in a hospital bed?” He took a step, and stumbled forward.

Steve caught him before he fell, “Officer Barnes, stand down. You’re not going anywhere.”

“What do you mean? We have to find her!”

“You’re not going anywhere right now. You’re badly wounded, Barnes.”

Bucky sighed. Steve was right, he could do anything extraneous in his condition. “Fine,” he pulled his arm away, “but as soon as I get out of here, I will not rest until she’s back, safe, and in one piece.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unfortunately you're back with your captor and things are looking bleak. Yet Bucky and Loki refuse to give up looking for you and has something between them developed? During their investigation, they're led to someone who reveals who the traitor is.

An entire month had already passed since you had gone missing. After hours of rehab, and reviewing evidence that was collected while he was still in the hospital, the moment that Bucky was released, the first thing he did was head straight to the station to start his investigation.

Stark was clean with his getaway, leaving Laufeyson as the only witness that night. Unfortunately, he was drugged and left unconscious; therefore, there were no leads on where Stark could have possibly taken you. But then was the second mystery to your kidnapping: Who helped Stark escape?

Laufeyson said that he had an accomplice, but there was no way on telling who it was. The room was left with no clues. All the cameras were wiped clear of the data collected from that night, so we were obviously dealing with someone capable of hacking, but that was the only clue they had. Every single lead that they had, and every person he and Loki interrogated, led directly to a dead end. They were sent right back to square one each time. It was almost as if they had just up and vanished into thin air. Still, there was no stopping this duo of men who wanted nothing more than you bring you back safely, into their loving arms. Both of them working day and night to find whatever they could.

“Hey, Barnes, take a look at this,” Loki rolled his chair to Bucky’s desk, holding one of the many blurry pictures from the only available street camera that they must have looked at over hundreds of times by that point.

Bucky grabbed it and Nudged Loki playfully, “Come on, Loki. How many times have I told you to call me Bucky?”

Loki smiled, “My mistake, Bucky, but look at this,” he used the tip of his pen to point a young civilian who was using their video camera, “maybe if we talk to this young man, we could find out what direction they were going, and who with?" 

Someone knocked on the door frame, causing the pair to look up. There stood Pietro, awkwardly smiling with a box of doughnuts in hand, "Hey guys. Daily doughnut delivery.”

Bucky motioned for him to set the box down, “Hey Pietro. Thanks for the doughnuts.”

“Anything for the guys who will find my best friend. Any new leads?” He asked, leaned up against the wall.

Loki rolled back over to his desk, “Yeah, actually. There’s a kid we need to find and interview.”

“A kid?” He asked, trying not to break from his usual character.

“Yeah, we’ll have to figure out who this kid is though. You should get going, Pietro. We can’t have any PFCs snooping in on our case, even you. But you understand, right?” Bucky grabbed two doughnuts from the box, and handed one over to Loki before returning to his work.

“Ah, yeah. Got it, my civilian ears cannot hear! See you guys tomorrow,” he joked and left the station, slightly on edge. Once he was in his car, he gave the big man a call. “Hey boss, they’re looking at some random kid right now. I don’t think it’ll be much of a lead for them, but just thought you should know.”

“You’re loyalty is much appreciated, Pietro,” Tony’s voice was strong and empowering, even through the phone, “I will be sure to repay you for this in the future.”

“Thank you, sir.” Pietro was very pleased to hear praise from someone he admired so greatly, “how is she doing?”

“This is not something we should discuss over the phone. You will simply have to come and see for yourself. Bring over breakfast to the safe house.”

“Of course, sir.”

“Goodbye, Pietro.”

“Have a great day, Mr. Stark.” He was smiling from ear to ear knowing that Tony trusted him so much.

Bucky stretched his prosthetic as his shoulder was in a decent amount of pain, and Loki took great notice, “Your shoulder feeling okay, Bucky?” He placed his hands on his shoulders, squeezing them lightly.

“I’m fine, Loki. It only aches in times of extreme stress. I just can’t help but worry about whether she’s doing okay or not,” he looked up and over his shoulder at Loki’s face.

Loki returned the same sympathetic look, “I know. She must be in pain, terrified even. Maybe she doesn’t even know that we’re looking for her or if we’ve given up.”

Bucky grabbed one of Loki’s hands, sensing that he was stressing out, “She’s fine. We know she’s strong. She would never give up hope, especially since it’s the both of us looking for her.”

Loki sighed and squeezed the hand holding his, “I sure hope so.”

You stretched your arms out in a yawn feeling some of your joints pop. The light through the window teased your bare skin, warming it the longer it was exposed. You moved your legs to hang over the side of the met, sliding your feet into your bunny slippers before standing up and exposing your naked body to the chilly air-conditioned room. It first sent a shiver up your spine, and you rushed to reach for your silk robe. As you draped it over yourself, you heard Tony on the phone in the living room. You took a deep breath before opening the door and strolling over to him, wrapping your arms around him, and kissing the nape of his neck.

“Good morning to you too, baby doll,” he said while hanging up the phone.”

“Did you sleep well, Tony?” you asked in a lustrous tone.

He pulled you to sit on his lap, “I did, especially after the night that you gave me. You’ve improved so much, doll. You follow every single one of my orders, and you do it without putting up a fight. If you did this from the very beginning, I wouldn’t have had to punish you so much.”

You tensed up to his words and closed your eyes, taking a deep breath to calm yourself down before responding, “Let’s not live in the past now, Tony. We have the present and future to look forward to.”

He squeezed your thigh and brought your face to his for a kiss, “God, you’re so sexy, baby doll. You make want to go crazy.” He was about to go into full detail about what he wanted to do with you, but you stopped him by putting your finger to his lips.

“Later, baby. Let’s have breakfast first. Plus, you have a meeting in an hour,” you said in hopes that it would delay the most dreaded part of your day.

“You’re right, but the moment I get home-”

You forced your lips onto his to keep him from telling you the disgusting details of what he would want upon his return. Luckily it didn’t make him angry, and instead made him happy that you initiated the kiss.

You heard beeping from the keypad outside before the front door swung open to reveal Pietro holding coffee and other breakfast essentials that he probably made at the doughnut shop. He placed it on the table, and beckoned the both of you to sit down. As you complied, he took a seat next to you.

“There’s no need for you to force-feed me today, Pietro,” you said with a pained smile.

“Ah, of course. Sorry, just a habit,” he smiled and you wanted nothing more than to slit his throat with your knife.

His betrayal to you didn’t make sense at first, but you slowly started putting the puzzle pieces together as time went on. Yet, it was still unbelievable to think that he was the one who was feeding information to Tony. He had all the right connections, and no one would have suspected him. You didn’t suspect him. But there he was, watching you closely to make sure you were eating. He followed every one of Tony’s demands, no matter what it was, and you couldn’t help but wonder if Wanda or Nebula knew.

“Oh shoot, I might be late,” Tony said as he stood up, “I’ll see you later. Come on, Pietro.”

Pietro shot up excitedly and held the door open for him, “See you tomorrow, Y/N.”

“Bruce will be here to keep an eye on you in a bit. Not that I don’t trust you, but you understand right?” He put on his signature shades, and off he went.

As soon as the door shut, you waited a few moments before you stood up, screaming as you threw your coffee at the wall. The brown liquid splattered everywhere, drenching the beige rug and artificial plants that surrounded it.

Always being watched. Always confined. Never truly free. There would never be an end to your torment and suffering. You kicked over your chair in an act of true frustration, and as if on cue, Bruce opened the door to see the peak of your mental break down. You looked at him with tears streaming down your face, and he rushed to give you an embrace.

Bruce Banner was the only one who wasn’t completely insane. Of course, he wasn’t going to help you retaliate in any way, but you still appreciated his kindness. To put it in simple terms, he was like a life boat that was keeping you afloat on the waves of a tsunami. He treated you with dignity and allowed you to watch the news on his computer every other morning.

You often saw the press conferences Steve held to reveal the progress made about your case. Which, unfortunately, wasn’t very much at all. Wanda and Nebula often made appearances, begging for any information about you or Tony. But Tony made sure to eliminate every single loose ends that could serve as a threat, so there was no one who could even give help them.

This was the rest of your life now. No sign of escape. No hope of being rescued. No more happiness. No more Loki. No more Bucky.

“Come on, let’s get this cleaned up before it settles in. We don’t want Mr. Stark to come home to a stained rug,” he said as he wiped away your tears. You nodded and went to grab a roll of paper towels.

“NYPD, please open up,” Loki said as he knocked on the door.

Bucky shook his head with a smile, “Loki, you really don’t have to say please.”

“I know, I just find that they cooperate better when you act politely,“ he shrugged.

"You’re a gem, Officer Laufeyson,” Bucky said as he ruffled his hair.

A woman opened the door just a crack, “Morning officers.”

“Hello, Ma'am. We’re officers Laufeyson and Barnes. We’d like to speak with your nephew, Peter Parker,” Loki said.

She studied them for a second before opening the door fully then yelling over her shoulder, “Peter, there are some nice officers here who need to talk to you. You better have not done anything illegal,” she smiled at the men, “come on in! Take a seat.” They did as requested and awaited their key witness.

“I didn’t do anything Aunt May, I swear,” a young man’s voice responded from within the apartment. He appeared before them with his hair in slight disarray and his arms folded, “What seems to be the problem officers?”

Bucky took the photo out of his pocket, laying it out on the coffee table for Peter to look at, “You were filming the day that Y/N was abducted, so we have reason to believe that something you’ve filmed could have evidence of where she could have been taken.”

“Well, you’re free to take a look. I doubt that it would be of any help though,” he said while he pulled up the video file on his laptop. Once he played it, the loud sound of the busy city filled their ears before a young woman appeared on screen.

“Okay, MJ. I’m going to need you to move slightly to the left,” Peter’s voice said, “and you’re good. Okay, let’s do this.” Music started playing and Peter rushed into the frame. The pair danced together in perfect sync. Though it wasn’t helpful, it was fun to watch.

Loki held his chin, watching very closely until he thought he saw something in the background, “Wait! Rewind a few seconds.”

Peter nodded, doing as he was instructed. They all leaned in, studying the screen. Then for barely a second, the alley behind the pair was visible, revealing the unmistakable face of Pietro Maximoff helping Tony Stark carry your body into the back of a car.

“Doughnut boy has got a lot of explaining to do,” Bucky said as he cracked the knuckles on his hand.

You released an exasperated sigh while Bruce tapped away on his laptop. He looked over to you for a moment, “What’s wrong now?”

“Do you think that someone is going to find me?” You asked, instantly regretting letting your inner thoughts escape your mind through words.

He stopped typing, “For your sake, I’m hoping so. But for my sake, I pray that you don’t. I’ll be out of a job again, and people only hire young faces these days rather than folks with experience. In this economy, I would still be in poverty is Mr. Stark didn’t take me in. I owe my life to him.”

“Bruce, can you sit with me?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Y/N. Mr. Stark could be home any minute now.”

“Please, Bruce?”

He sighed and shut his laptop, making his way to take a seat next to you on the sofa, “Only for a little bit, alright?”

You wrapped leaned against his shoulder, “Thank you, Bruce. I’m glad you’re kind to me.” The both of you sat in silence for a bit before you asked, “If you weren’t here, I think that I’d try to escape as often as I could.”

“You know I’m going to have to tell Mr. Stark about you mentioning being found or escaping, right?”

“No, Bruce. You don’t have to. You know that you don’t.”

“I do, Y/N. I’m sorry.”

You pushed off of him and backed away, “No, no, no, no. Bruce, please. I-I promise that I won’t- just- Bruce… I’ve been good. He hasn’t gotten angry with me in days, Bruce! Please!” You started getting hysteric at this point. You had tried so hard to stay on Tony’s good side, and you didn’t want some little slip up to be the thing to send you spiraling to the bottom yet again. And you always had the worst timing.

The door opened, and in came Tony. He instantly rushed to your side, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, baby doll. What’s going on here Banner?” He held you in his arms as you sobbed. You couldn’t help but cling to him with hopes of keeping him calm for just a little longer.

Bruce pursed his lips, rubbing the back of his head, “She, uh, said something about escaping just a little bit ago.”

Tony’s grip on your wrists tightened slightly and you shook your head violently, pressing your body against his, “Tony, baby, I didn’t mean anything by it. I promise. I love you, Tony.”

He squeezed your cheeks with one of his hands, “Bruce, I think it’s time you left. Thank you for your loyalty. Loyalty is something I have to nail into my dear baby doll.”

“Yes, Mr. Stark,” he responded. With that, he was gone leaving you alone with Tony.

He tore your robe off of you and threw you down on the couch, “I love you, baby doll. This is why I have to keep you on a leash, so you don’t run away from me again. Be a good doll and don’t resist today, okay? I’ve had a bit of a rough day.“ And so his torture began.

"Hey, Neb. Is Pietro around?” Steve asked politely.

She smiled, “Oh yeah. He’s in the back. I’ll go grab him for you.”

He leaned on the countertop, “Thanks, babe.”

Pietro hopped over the counter, throwing his apron to the side, “Hey, Steve! To what do I owe the pleasure? Not enough from today’s delivery?”

Steve chuckled and stood straight up, “No, actually. I came here for a different reason. Get Wanda in here, would you, Neb?” She nodded and beckoned her to come in.

Pietro began to break into a cold sweat, “What’s going on buddy? Something wrong?”

“Yeah there is. Pietro Maximoff, you’re under arrest for assisting in the kidnapping of Y/N,” he said boldly.

“What? Piet, what is the meaning of this?” Wanda asked

Pietro was speechless. He looked to Wanda who was being held by Nebula as she sobbed. He shook his head and made a break for the door, only to run into Bucky.

“Where do you think you’re going, Piet?” Bucky asked.

Pietro stood momentarily before hopping over the counter to attempt to run out via the back door. In the door frame, he ran into Loki as he stood with a smug smile.

Loki folded his arms, “This way wasn’t really a wise choice either, huh friend?”

He sighed then dropped to his knees with his hands behind his head before Steve began handcuffing him. “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.”

“What have you done, Pietro?” Nebula mustered up the courage to finally say.

He simply stared at them in silence before being dragged away. But he stopped at the door and struggled to yell over his shoulder, “He loves her! You can see it in his eyes!”

“What he’s doing isn’t love,” Bucky said.

“It’s obsession,” Loki completed his statement.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your location is revealed and your boys are finally coming to save you in the nick of time. But you can't have a big win without a few losses...

“Where the fuck is he keeping her?” Bucky slammed his hands down on the table, causing Pietro to flinch.

Pietro tried his best to show no fear and folded his arms, keeping the straightest face he could. He wasn’t going to give up any information, and he was positive about that.

Loki placed his hand on Bucky’s shoulder, turning him around. “Relax, my friend. That isn’t the way to get information out of someone,” he whispered, “allow me.” He sat on the table, staring at Pietro with a smug smile, “Hello Pietro.”

Pietro glared at him, adjusting his position in his chair, “What do you want?”

He shrugged, “Oh nothing. I just wanted to ask how you’re feeling today. There’s no rush here.”

“I’m not going to tell you anything, Loki,” Pietro spat.

“Oh, I think you will. Tell me, Pietro, do you feel bad for what you’ve done?”

“I’ve done nothing wrong. I’ve only returned something that belonged to someone else.”

Bucky clenched his fist, “Y/N is not an object, Pietro. I thought you were her friend.”

Pietro snapped at him, “I am her friend! That’s why I’m keeping her safe there, where Mr. Stark can protect her.”

“Where exactly is ‘there,’ Piet,” Bucky asked as his glare intensified.

“It’s down at the-” Pietro stopped himself, “nice try, James.”

“Oh, you’re calling him by his name now?” Loki asked, his expression amused that he almost slipped up, “What is Mr. Stark trying to protect her from?”

“From dangerous men like the two of you, isn’t that obvious?”

Bucky shook his head, and lifted Pietro out of his seat by the collar of his shirt, “You realize that he abuses and best her, right? He’s tortured her and imprisoned her, yet you have the audacity of calling us-”

“Bucky,” Loki interrupted calmly.

Bucky tightened his grip and Pietro winced. He let go of him then receding into a corner, running his fingers through his hair to regain his composure. He started to contemplate whether Pietro was actually insane or not, considering the fact that he was justifying Tony holding you against your will. Bucky began acting as if he was occupied in his thoughts, hoping that Loki’s plan would work, “I can’t deal with this.” He stormed out of the room, making his way to the observation room to make this all seem more believable. There he saw Steve watching the interrogation with great intensity.

“You think this’ll work?” Steve asked.

“I’m counting on it. He’s delusional and seems to admire Stark,” Bucky responded.

“It hurts me to hear you say that I’m dangerous after I’ve worked by your side with her,” Loki held a hand to his chest, acting like he was hurt.

Pietro broke character, finally, “Well I know that you’re not dangerous. I’m talking about him,” he motioned to Bucky, who wasn’t even paying attention, “Every time something bad happened to her, he was the one who was with her.”

“So you blame him for all the bad?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Do you trust me, Pietro?” Loki whispered.

Pietro bit his lip, thinking about the question, then nodded.

“Then can I let you in on a little secret?,” Loki glanced at the glass for a quick second to signify that Bucky should be listening then leaned closer him as he whispered, “I don’t like Bucky either.” He lied, hoping that he was gullible enough to believe him. Once Pietro smiled, Loki knew he had fallen right into his trap. Bucky tensed, even though he knew that it was a lie, hearing it from Loki somehow made him feel uneasy. “You see, I also realized how he was the reason Y/N was suffering so much. I absolutely resent the man. I commend you, my friend, for keeping her safe.”

“I’m glad you can see my side, Loki. I was really beginning to think that you would never understand,” Pietro beamed.

“Of course I understand! I love Y/N just as much as Mr. Stark does. Do you mind telling me how she’s doing?”

“Oh yes! She’s still showing a bit of resistance, but after being punished almost daily, she’s started to calm down. I’ve at to force-feed her some days, but these days she eats by herself,” he spoke with such confidence, thinking that he could tell Loki anything.

Loki held his breath, not wanting to imagine what she must be going through under Tony’s care. “I feel like I could help her finally accept that she is meant to be there, don’t you? Why don’t you tell me where she is and I could assist Mr. Stark.”

“I- I don’t know if Mr. Stark would be okay with that,” Pietro answered hesitantly.

“Mr. Stark would appreciate it if she stopped resisting him fully, wouldn’t he? It would be a great surprise for him,” Loki was so close, and Bucky listened closely for Pietro’s response.

“You’re right. Let’s head to the docks now,” he stood up, preparing to leave, “he had a fake apartment built in a warehouse, isn’t Mr. Stark clever?”

“Thank you, Pietro you’ve been very helpful,” Loki said offering his hand to shake. Pietro proudly shook it, but Loki twisted it behind his back to place handcuffs on him, “Extremely helpful. I will be sure to mention it during Tony’s trial when we catch him.”

“You tricked me? How could you?” he kicked at yelled, struggling to get away.

“You really are insane,” Bucky said over the intercom as two officers dragged Pietro away.

Loki faced the glass with a serious expression, “Let’s go get our girl, Bucky.”

Tony held you close to his chest, “Baby doll, you’re not mad at me, are you? You understand this was for your own good, right?”

“Of course, Tony. I understand completely,” you said, void of emotion. You were simply glad that the intense torture had finally come to an end. Your lower parts still ached from him forcing himself inside of you for so long, but there was nothing you could do about it. But now, you were so absolutely positive that being rescued wasn’t an option for you anymore. Freedom is only a dream.

“What are you thinking out, baby doll?”

“Only you, my love. Nothing but thoughts of you.”

He smiled, placing a kiss on your forehead, “That’s what I like to hear. Be a dear and make me some coffee, would you.”

“As you wish,” you said, almost robotic sounding. As you got out of bed, you wrapped yourself in your robe, noticing that one of the sleeves had ripped, no thanks to Tony. You prepared his coffee in the kitchen, your legs still slightly shaking. Even your hands with shaking as you attempted to carry it back to the bedroom. His smile sickened you and you lost your focus momentarily which caused you to trip over your own foot. You spilled a great fraction of the cup’s contents on the carpet and Tony sighed.

“You’re a real klutz. Can’t you do one simple task?” he yelled.

“I’m sorry, Tony,” you said with your head lowered.

He slipped out of bed, and you thought he was going to hit you. Instead, you felt him gently ruffle your hair, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get Pietro to clean this up when he gets here. Call him for me while I get dressed,”

You complied happily, relieved that he wasn’t making any advances to harm you. As you waited for Pietro to answer the phone, someone that wasn’t Pietro answered the phone.

“Hello?” It appeared to be a familiar male’s voice.

“Hello, is Pietro available?”

“Y/N? Is that you?” You finally recognized it as Steve.

You glanced over your shoulder to make sure Tony wasn’t around to hear you as you whispered, “Steve? Why do you have Pietro’s phone?”

“We have him in our custody.”

“So you figured out that it was him? I’m so glad.”

“Are you okay? Are you hurt at all?”

You sighed, “You already know the answer to that.”

“Y/N, listen to me carefully. Loki and Bucky are on their way to get you. I’ll be following them, close behind. Just hang tight.”

This news made you so happy, “Thank you! Thank you so much! I… I’ll see you soon!”  
“You seem overly excited to be seeing Pietro,” Tony said.

You jumped slightly, and hung up the phone, “Oh, he was just telling me how he’s bringing me doughnuts from the shop.”

“That’s good. Bruce should be coming pretty soon. I’m heading out to discuss a business trade,” he said as he fixed his cuff-links.

“No! Don’t leave,” you said out of desperation and panic.

He tilted his head and placed his hands on your shoulders, “Don’t worry, baby doll. I’ll be back in a jiffy.” Tony began walking away, but you grabbed his sleeve. He sighed, turning to face you, “Baby doll, as much as I love that you want me to stay, I really don’t have any time for this.” He pulled his sleeve away from you, straightening his suit.

You were so desperate at this point to keep him home, and you had only one option left. You stood in front of him before he opened the door, letting your robe slip off of you. Tony raised a brow and looked you up and down.

Just then, Bruce arrived. “Whoa, sorry. Didn’t mean to, uh, interrupt,” he said, covering his eyes as he sat at his station, which was unfortunately right next to the bedroom.

Tony swept you off of your feet, starting to carry you to the bedroom, “Don’t come into the bedroom for a while, Banner.”

“Wasn’t counting on it.”

Bucky pulled up to The warehouse, checking if any of his men were guarding the perimeter.

“He’s so confident that we’d never find him that he doesn’t even have security,” Loki said with a scoff.

“Whatever. Ready to rescue the princess, Partner?” Bucky said as he cocked his gun.

Loki smirked while he cocked his, “Let’s get our Princess Peach.”

“Princess Peach? Really?”

“What? I thought a video game reference would be a nice touch.”

“Does that make me Mario or Luigi?”

“Well, I’d assumed that I was Luigi, and you were Mario.”

“That makes sense. So Stark is Bowser then?”

“Yes. Now let’s get going, we’re wasting time,” Loki said before he got out of the car.

“What a gem, that Officer Laufeyson,” Bucky said to himself before following him.

The two of them stealthily made their way into the warehouse. The entire place was empty other than what Pietro must have described as the decoy apartment. A man, who they didn’t recognize, entered it just as they got there, and they caught a quick glimpse of you.

“You didn’t happen to catch if she was wearing clothes or not, did you?” Bucky asked.

Loki shook his head, “She was definitely in the nude.”

“This guy is going to pay.”

Loki triggered his communicator and spoke into it, “Hey Chief, we’re going in. Have backup standby.”

“Roger that,” Steve replied.

Bucky chuckled quietly, “Chief Rogers said Roger that.” Loki restrained himself from laughing as they approached the building. “Okay, game faces on. Let’s do this, Loki,” Bucky said. The both of them counted to 3 before kicking the door open.

Tony dropped you instantly, and you scrambled to cover yourself with your robe. Bruce sat with his hands up while the two officers aimed at the two men.

Tony stood with his hands in his pockets, smiling confidently, “You lied to me again, baby doll,” he looked down at you with his eyes squinted, “How did you manage to get Pietro to crack? He’s shown more loyalty to me than a well-trained dog would.”

“Quite easily, really. The bastard may have the loyalty of a dog, but he’s just as gullible as a puppy,” Loki stated.

“Come over here, Y/N,” Bucky motioned and you started to crawl forward.

Tony cocked a gun, pointing it at the back of your head, “I don’t think so. I think it would be best for all of us if she stayed right where she is. Stand next to me, girl.” You gulped and did as instructed. He pulled you in to his chest, holding the gun right to your temple, “See? She’s much safer now.”

“You’ve just made her into more of a hostage, how is she safer?” Bucky asked.

“ Rudimentary. The two of you are in love with her. You would never even dream of taking the shot if it meant killing her, too,” he laughed maniacally. Both of them glanced at each other, confirming what Tony said. “Elementary, dear Watson,” he turned to say to Bruce.

“Say her name, Stark,” Bucky said.

“W-what? Why?” He stared at him quizzically.

“Every single time that you’ve talked to or about her, you’ve only said her name once.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“You love her don’t you?” Loki added.

“Of course I do!” Tony exclaimed.

“Then you’d have no problem saying her name.”

Tony shook his head, “I don’t need to say it to prove that I love her.”

Bucky scoffed, “You don’t love Y/N. You’re obsessed with the fear she has for you.”

“Fear? What do you mean? She’s not scared of me. Right, baby doll?” He looked at your face to see your terrified expression and groaned, “She loves me. I know that she does.”

“Why don’t you let her tell you that then,” Loki suggested.

“I don’t have time for this bullshit. You’re going to let us get out of here, and get away or else I kill her,” he pushed the gun harder against your head.

“Do it,” you said.

They all looked at you in confusion.

“What do you mean by 'do it?’” Tony asked.

“I want you to shoot me, Tony,” you stated boldly.

“Is that what you really want?” his grip loosened slightly.

“Yes. Do it,” you said again.

“Stark, if you as much as place your finger, I swear to the gods that you will not get out of this alive,” Loki yelled.

“Shoot him, you shoot me, Loki,” you said with tears in your eyes.

Tony hugged your tightly again and aimed at Bucky, “How about if I get rid of your competition for you?”

“God, I’m getting sick of this,” Bruce said before standing up to quickly hit the back of Tony’s head with his aluminum briefcase, instantly knocking him out with the gun shooting off in a random direction as he fell with you still in his arms. Bucky and Loki lowered their guns, staring at Bruce in disbelief. He shrugged, “The nut was getting on my nerves.” He helped you get up and the officers rushed to your side, both embracing you simultaneously.

“Come get him, Chief. Y/N is safe, and the perpetrator is unconscious,” Bucky said into his communicator.

“Roger that,” he said again.

You let out a laugh, “Steve Rogers just said Roger.” They looked at each other then kissed each side of your cheek, “Aw, you guys. I’ve missed you.”

“As have we,” Loki said.

“We’ve worked nonstop to find you for so long,” Bucky said.

“You don’t have any idea how many times we’ve come to a dead end.”

You pulled away from them, “Actually, I do,” you motioned to Bruce, “this hero here let me watch the news as much as possible, so I’ve been following my own case.”

“And who might this be?” Loki asked.

“Um, hi,” Bruce said awkwardly, “I’m Bruce Banner, hacker extraordinaire.”

“If you’ve ever run into technical difficulties at any point during the investigation, Bruce has been responsible for it. He’s really not a bad guy, I promise. He’s just struggling with money. You should have him work for the station instead.”

Steve came in with a few other officers, “I might have to take you up on that offer. I could have it arranged pretty easily. It would be just like having our very own Penelope Garcia.” He picked up Tony’s unconscious body as if it were a rag doll. “Come with me, Mr. Banner. You and I have some talking to do. You two, get some clothes on the poor girl.” He walked away with Bruce, talking to him happily.

“This went way better that I had originally expected, huh Loki?” Bucky said, the three of you walking to the squad car, hand in hand.

Loki nodded in agreement, “You’re right, Bucky. I thought there would be more drama, or at least another unexpected betrayal, but no.” He opened the trunk of the car, handing you clothes to change into.

You put them on, careful to not flash anyone, “When did you two start addressing each other by first names?”

Loki wrapped an arm around Bucky, “He and I spent a lot of time together, so we bonded over time.”

You stopped in the middle of pulling a pair of jeans on to stare at them, “Does this mean the men battling for my affection have fallen for each other?”

Bucky smiled as he pinched the bridge of his nose, “No, it just means that we’re practically brothers.

"Oh,” Loki pouted. “I thought we had something special going on there,” he joked and Bucky playfully pushed him away. Suddenly all of your attention was drawn to the fact that there was now blood on Bucky’s hand. Loki lifted his arm and turned slightly to reveal that he was bleeding out of a bullet wound and you covered your mouth as you gasped.“Well, that doesn’t appear to be very healthy,” he said with a smile before sitting on the bumper of the car.

“We need a medic here, stat. Officer Laufeyson has been shot. There is an officer down,” Bucky said into the communicator.

You both held one of Loki’s hands, and he looked back and forth, from you to Bucky, “What’s with the long faces? This’ll just be a reason to add to Stark’s sentence. Surely he’ll be put away for life.”

“Loki, you’re not dying. We just- we’re all finally together again,” you

“I’m sorry, Y/N, my dear, but I’ve already lost a great deal of blood by this point,” he squeezed your hand as much as he could then his gaze shifted to Bucky, “looks like you’ve won, partner.”

Bucky pounded the car, his eyes were now filled with tears that were ready to fall, making it shake, “Damn it all, Loki, this isn’t the end. This a cheap way to win. Come on, Partner. You’ve got a lot of fight left in you. You can’t go out like this.”

“Mario always gets the girl,” he said while bringing Bucky’s hand to yours, “take care of each other, alright?” He brought both of your hands to his lips, and kissed both of them. Then his hands fell.

You began to wail then fell to your knees, your cries echoing as the sound of sirens grew closer. Bucky knelt with you, hugging you close to him.


	11. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Justice if finally served just in time for your wedding. Your stag and hen parties are fun, yet differentiate from each other greatly in terms of activity and legality. But overall, your wedding day has arrived and you finally get the happy ending you've always deserved.

“All rise,” the bailiff said. All eyes were on the judge as he slowly took a seat at the bench. He took a moment to clean his glasses before pounding his gavel on his sound block, nodding to allow the bailiff to continue, “The Honorable Judge Stan Lee Presiding.”

“Please be seated,” Judge Lee said. “Bailiff, bring in the jury, if you will.”

She nodded and opened the door to the Jury Deliberation room, motioning for them to be seated.

You bit your lip, glancing over to the defense’s side to see Tony leaning back, smiling smugly. Seeing him act so confident made your blood boil. He looked over to see you staring and blew up a kiss. His actions made you even more nervous since he tried so hard to make it look like you wanted everything he did to happen, and the worst part is that he was so cunning that you have no idea if it worked or not. This trial had been going on for 3 months now because everything was so detailed that you just wished that it would end with today’s final verdict, especially hoping that it wouldn’t be carried onto your big day. You pinched yourself as a nervous tick, but Bucky place his hand on yours. This startled you, and you looked at him to see how concerned he was.

“Calm down, Y/N. It’ll be alright. This is it,” he whispered. His voice was slightly gruff and crackly, giving off a very soothing tone to it. You held his hand in return then averted your attention back to the judge.

“Sir Foreman, have you reached a verdict?” He asked.

“Indeed we have, your honor,” he said in reply. The foreman handed the bailiff with the verdict’s details on it, bringing it over to the judge to go over.

Judge Lee adjusted his glasses as he read it then nodded it approval, giving it back to the bailiff, so she could return it to the foreman to announce its contents. “What say you?”

You squeezed Bucky’s hand tightly when the foreman cleared his throat to speak, “We the jury, in the case of Y/F/N versus Tony Stark and Pietro Maximoff, find the defendants guilty of all charges.”

Upon hearing those words, you let out a relieved laugh, hugging Bucky tightly. You were finally free. This was the greatest thing you had ever heard in your entire life. If only Loki were there to experience it with you. The rest of the people within the courtroom cheered in celebration of a malicious man put behind bars where he belonged. All the while Tony’s smile disappeared, and Pietro held his head in his hands.

Judge Lee pounded his gavel, quieting everyone down as he spoke, “Come to order. Thank you jury for your dedication, time, and deliberation of the case at hand. This was a great tragedy that occurred, and it’s my obligation to see both sides. Mr. Stark, Mr. Maximoff.” The two stood up, prepared for their sentencing, “I hereby sentence you both to 85 years of imprisonment with no chance of parole. So ordered.”

“Even for me?” Pietro asked.

“As an accessory after the fact, yes,” he stated. Judge Lee looked over to you and smiled, “I wish you both a happy life and hope you have a beautiful wedding. Go in peace.” He pounded his gavel once more, and the trial was concluded. Everyone watched the convicts be dragged away as they exited the courtroom.

You saw Steve and Nebula consoling Wanda outside at the bottom of the steps. Pietro might have been a horrible person, but he was still your best friend’s twin brother. You hugged her as she sobbed, “I’m so sorry Wanda. I wish this never happened.”

“N-no. It’s not that. I just can’t believe that Pietro was capable of performing such acts. He is a disgrace,” she said while wiping her tears away.

“What I’m struggling to wrap my head around is the fact that he was able to act so normally around us at work. I really never thought it would be him. I never thought he would to that to you,” Nebula’s expression was hurt and tears welled up in her eyes. Steve kissed the top of her head, bringing her in for a hug.

“Hey, no. It’s fine, you guys. My wedding is in tomorrow, and I don’t need all of these negative vibes getting in the way of everything,” you said with a smile.

“My soon to be wife is right. We should be celebrating with bachelor and bachelorette parties tonight! Plus, we won the case! That’s another thing to celebrate! Tony can never hurt my girl ever again,” Bucky said, hugging you from behind as he rested his chin on top of your head.

Steve chuckled, “Loki would have loved what I have planned for the bachelor party.”

The group fell silent before you cleared your throat then smiled, “What are you waiting for? Let’s get changed then get our party on!” They cheered and split away, wishing each other farewell until reconvening later.

Steve, Bucky, Sam, Bruce and Scott sat crowded in a booth as they each shared a wild story of something Bucky had once done. Steve shared even more embarrassing tales from high school, but they’d all forget by the time the night ended.

“Come on man, bring on the strippers! Where are the strippers at?” Sam said.

“Nope. No strippers tonight, Nebula would murder me 5 times if I even glance at a stripper,” Steve said while shaking his head.

“Same goes for me. I have a daughter at home, and I don’t feel like degrading some poor bastard’s little girl who should be studying for college exams,” Scott said.

Sam looked to Bucky, hoping at least he would agree, “Bucky, my boy. A stripper for your last night as an unmarried man.”

“None of them compare to Y/N, and I love her too much to do anything to betray her,” he said.

“What about you Bruce? Is the geek secretly a freak in the sheets?” Sam nudged him.

“Um, no. I like to respect women. Strippers deserve more than men showering them with money for them to expose themselves. It seems immoral and wrong.”

Sam waved them off, “Man, this is supposed to be a fun night! What if Loki was here? I bet he’d be down!”

Scott boomed with laughter"Loki would have been the first one to shut you down, and you know it.“ The rest of them laughed and nodded.

Steve sighed, "You know what? Here’s to Loki. His sacrifice led to the joining of two young lovers, and I hope he’s doing well. To Loki.”

“To Loki,” they held their bottles up in unison then clinked them together before taking a swing of the drinks.

“To me,” Loki said with his arms raised as he stepped up to the table.

Bucky shot up to hug him, “Hey! I thought they weren’t letting you out until tomorrow morning before the wedding! ”

Loki returned the hug, patting Bucky’s back, “Well, they let me out early once I convinced them that your best man had to be at the bachelor party!”

“I still can’t believe you chose Loki over Steve,” Scott said.

“Really? They have matching bullet wounds, they’re partners, and they’re in love with the same girl,” Steve explained, scooting over to make room for Loki to sit.

“You know if you really loved me, you would share her,” Loki joked as he took a seat.

“Ha! Maybe every Tuesday and Thursday,” Bucky joked back.

“How’s it healing up?” Sam asked.

Loki lifted his shirt to reveal the scabbed wound, “It’s healing pretty nicely, actually. I’m glad that I passed out from the blood loss, or else I certainly would have felt a lot more pain than I did.”

Steve raised his hand to get the attention of a waiter, “How about I order you a drink, hero?”

Loki shook his head, “No thanks. I’d rather not have a raging hangover so that I could enjoy the ceremony.”

“This is also a reason why I chose him,” Bucky wrapped an arm around him, “he’s intelligent, just like me.”

“Oh yeah? Well, Mr. intelligent, you spilled beer all over yourself,” Scott laughed as he pointed that out.

“Damn it. I wonder how the girls are doing,” Bucky said while Steve and Loki helped him clean it up.

You stuck your head out of one the car’s sunroof and shouted, “Fuck you, Tony! I’m getting married, and you can’t control me anymore!” You weren’t even drunk, the urge just compelled you to yell it out. You whooped before Wanda and Nebula pulled you back down.

“Keep your head down, someone might catch us,” Nebula said as she drove along the back entrance of the zoo’s side entrance with her headlight turned off.

“Relax, Neb. All the cops know us, and I’m pretty sure they all know we’re going to pull something crazy,” Wanda said playfully.

“Yeah, Neb. It’s not like we’re stealing another penguin,” you with sarcasm apparent in your voice.

“Yes, I know that you’re not planning on stealing a flightless bird. You’re planning on stealing a fucking red panda. I don’t even know how you talked me into this,” Nebula raised her voice.

You put your hands on her shoulders from the back seat, “You’re the one driving, Nebula. It’s not too late to turn back now.”

She scoffed, “And miss out on the possibility of having a red panda as a pet? No way.”

“That’s my girl! Now go work your magic, Y/N!” Wanda yelled as she hugged her from the passengers side, ushering you to get out.

You stared at yourself in your wedding dress, staring at what was barely left of Tony’s abuse. Everything that happened over the course of 5 months astonished you. You went from being an empty shell to being a totally renewed person. If you were able to go back in time to the night you tried running away, you would simply tell yourself to trust the man with the fake arm.

“You look absolutely stunning,” a man’s voice said from behind you. You looked behind yourself in the mirror to see Loki standing with his hands in his pockets, grinning from ear to ear. He hugged you and you squeezed as tight as you could.

“You asshole! You didn’t tell me that you got out last night! I would have crashed the boys’ party if I had known,” you smacked him lightly.

He let out a small laugh, “Well, you know me. I’m full of surprises.”

“No fucking duh, I really thought you were a goner.”

“Yes, just as you’ve said so many times for that past 3 months. Every. Single. Day.”

“I wish you got out earlier. Tony’s face was priceless when he heard the verdict.”

He laughed, “So I’ve heard. At least I’m here for your wedding.”

“Speaking of which, you should get to your spot. It’s starting soon.”

“Ah, you’re right. Before I go, let me just tell you how gorgeous you are and how proud I am to see how much you’ve grown,” he said, his hands on your shoulders.

You tucked your hair behind your ear, looking at the floor in embarrassment, “Well, it’s no thanks to you and Bucky. You saved me.”

“Bucky is a lucky man. I should change my mind now and take you for myself,” he joked.

“Oh hush,” you shook your head with a smile.

“I jest. Well, I’ll see you at the end of the aisle,” he gave you a quick peck on the lips.

“Alright, see you soon,” you said while he made his exit, studying yourself in the mirror one last time.

The wedding march music played in your ears and you wrapped your arm around Lieutenant Bruce Banner’s. He smiled and whispered, “You look beautiful.” You nodded to thank him and began your march down the isle, feeling all eyes on you.

Bucky’s heart skipped a beat, just as it did the first time he’d ever seen her. You were beautiful, that much was clear, but you looked utterly astonishing in your wedding dress. To Bucky, it was like he was watching an angel be led down the aisle. He began to tear up, and Loki handed him a handkerchief.

Once you got to the front of the isle, Bruce kissed you on the cheek then you joined hands with Bucky as you stood in front of him.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Y/F/N and James Buchanan Barnes in holy matrimony,” the pastor began the ceremony.

“You look so… wow,” Bucky whispered.

“Thank you, so do you,” you whispered back.

“I’ve got a really quick question though.”

“What is it?”

“Why is Nebula holding a red panda?”

“No reason. Let’s just focus on the wedding,” you nervously changed the subject.

The pastor went on and on with the usual wedding shtick. Steve handed you both the rings and you slid them onto each other’s fingers. Now it was time for the vows you had prepared.

“I’ll go first,” Bucky cleared his throat, “Y/N, I knew from the very first moment that I saw you that I wanted to protect you from anything and everything that was meant to harm you. Since then, I have done nothing but do everything I could to make that happen. You’ve had it really bad these past few months, but I can promise you that it’s all clear skies from here. As your husband, I will put your life before mine, just as I should. As long as I shall live, I promise to care for you, protect you, and work hard every day to make sure you never have to needlessly struggle. In the event that I pass early, I give Loki full consent to console you then take my place.” Everyone laughed at the last line, and he continued, “I love you, Y/N. I always will.”

You wiped the tears from your eyes and sighed, “Well, I guess that means it’s my turn. Bucky Barnes. You have never done anything to wrong me. You have done everything you could to keep me safe, even with the risk of losing your life. Heck, you and Loki have been shot because of me. There is no one else I’d rather be the loving wife of. Well, except for Loki,” everyone laughed again, “Before you came along, I’ve never felt like any place I’ve stayed in was really a home because I never felt safe. The moment you found me, you’ve protected me with everything you have, and because of that, I’ve finally found a home in your heart. I love you with every fiber of my being. You’re my sanctuary, Bucky Barnes.”

“You may now kiss the bride,” the pastor said.

You cupped Bucky’s face in your hands, and he wrapped his arms around your waist. The moment your lips met, it was like fireworks were going off. It was bliss as he dipped you, causing you to smile into the kiss.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you for the first time: Mr. and Mrs. Barnes,” the pastor stated happily once you two pulled away from each other to face the audience of people, smiling like a pair of idiots.

Happily married idiots.


End file.
